Storks and cranes rode out Hurricane Ian in zoo’s bathroom

By Leo Black via SWNS

This bizarre footage shows huge birds on an animal sanctuary being housed in the bathrooms of the farm to protect them from the high winds caused by Hurricane Ian.

Footage shows two enormous cranes - and a large stork named Oldman - sheltering in the bathrooms alongside their food to protect them from being injured.

Hurricane Ian passed over St. Augustine Alligator Farm, Florida last Thursday and Friday, leaving much of the area damaged due to floods.

The alligator farm was no exception, and they quickly executed emergency plans as the storm approached.

Luckily, the park has an emergency plan, as per the guidelines of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, and implemented it immediately.

Zoo director John Brueggen, 54, said: "We can gather up every bird and primate at the zoo in about five hours, and that's what we did.

"What you should understand is that the majority of the animals at the zoo are actually alligators and crocodiles, they tend to just go to the bottom of the pools.

"It's actually quite enriching for them. They get something new to hide under and push around, so they're fine," he said, referring to debris that might fall into their enclosure.

The rest of the birds and primates were put into flight kennels or the Komodo Dragon building for protection, however, the cranes and Oldman couldn't join them.

John added: "It's a really strong building and would do fine in the storm, but the long-legged birds wouldn't fit in the kennels, so we put them in the bathrooms."

The birds were stored in the bathroom for two days, with two employees keeping an eye on them.

The animals were provided with as much food and enrichment as possible during the process.

The monkeys' food was provided in a way that they needed to find it, both for entertainment and to stop binge eating. The birds were easier to deal with and were fed as usual.

John said: "Monkeys are like people, so if you give them all their food at once, they eat it all at once."

The county escaped the worst of the damage from the storm and it didn't hit the farm directly, so they only suffered minor damage.

However, severe flooding was reported in the city, and the entire area was subject to evacuation.

John said: "Thankfully, it was not a direct hit like Hurricane Matthew. We had some flooding and a few trees fall down, but nothing serious."

Incredibly, the zoo staff managed to complete the entire cleanup operation in a single day, moving the felled trees, debris and floodwater.

The cleanup was done so fast because the following Saturday the zoo was hosting Crocktoberfest, where guests try craft beers throughout the zoo.

"I'm really proud of our staff," John said.

"We had 50 people here the next day, for cleanup and they all did an amazing job."