Koala bear causes five-car pile-up in Australia
After causing a massive car crash on an Australian highway in Brisbane, Australia, a koala bear has been safely returned to the wild.
A koala bear has been rescued and returned to the wild after causing chaos on the roads in Brisbane, Australia.
While the animal was unharmed when rescued, it did cause several cars to crash into each other as they avoided the marsupial in heavy rush-hour traffic. The incident caused several injuries, and one person required medical attention.
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Moments after the incident, driver Nadia Tugwell got out of her car to see if any of the injured needed help and tried to rescue the animal that caused the commotion. With the help of a stranger, she managed to grab hold of the koala using her jacket and put him in the backseat of her car.
"The koala was absolutely not damaged in any way. It was very active but very calm,” Nadia said after the ordeal. She adds that she called wildlife rescuers who helped relocate the koala to the wild after driving to a nearby petrol station.
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Nadia adds that the koala was very inquisitive and climbed into the front of the car while she drove. She later spotted the animal sitting in the driving seat after she had parked her car.
Sharing the adorable images on social media, Nadia says that “it decided to come to the front toward me, so I said, ‘OK, you stay here. I’ll get out,’” she said. “It started sitting for a while on the steering wheel: (as if ) saying: ‘let’s go for a drive,’ and that’s when I started taking photos.” Nadia explained that the koala bear did scratch her leather seats slightly but admitted she didn’t mind and was glad that the animal was safe.
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These photos released by Nadia Tugwell, shows a koala inside Tugwell's car in Adelaide, Australia on Monday, Feb. 8, 2021.
— ༺🦋༻ᗰᗩƳᖇᗩ༺🦋༻ (@LepapillonBlu) February 9, 2021
The koala has been rescued after causing a five-car pileup while trying to cross a six-lane freeway in southern Australia. pic.twitter.com/P6tqFuKSCU
Living next to a eucalyptus forest, this isn’t the first time Nadia has rescued a koala bear. In fact, it has become such a common occurrence that she has learned how to calm down a bear by covering their eyes. “I live up in the hills, and if you let them do what they want to do, and you don’t chase them or something, they’re okay,” she explains.
Fortunately, wildlife rescuers retrieved the bear and relocated it to a nearby forest – far away from any roads.
Main image courtesy of Twitter screenshot