How zoos protect animals when a hurricane hits
'We've used hallways, we've used bathrooms'
Although she and her colleagues were starting to see the winds and rains get stronger as the eyewall of storm Helene moved north of them on 26 September, Kelly Martin called her husband at about 20:30 to tell him she would be home by midnight at the latest.
As the vice president of zoological care, Martin had to ensure all animals at the Florida Clearwater Marine Aquarium were hunkered down and safe through the hurricane, and she was part of the "ride-out team", the workers who'd be riding the storm out with the animals. But the mood was optimistic that the impact would be minimal. "We were all feeling really good," says Martin, who has been working at the aquarium for 14 years.
It was barely past 21:00 when the building started taking in water. It gushed down the streets outside, and began seeping into the aquarium, leaving them 4ft (1.2m) deep in a saltwater flood.
"...I'll tell you... this was probably one of the more scary events that we've gone through," says Martin...
As the vice president of zoological care, Martin had to ensure all animals at the Florida Clearwater Marine Aquarium were hunkered down and safe through the hurricane, and she was part of the "ride-out team", the workers who'd be riding the storm out with the animals. But the mood was optimistic that the impact would be minimal. "We were all feeling really good," says Martin, who has been working at the aquarium for 14 years.
It was barely past 21:00 when the building started taking in water. It gushed down the streets outside, and began seeping into the aquarium, leaving them 4ft (1.2m) deep in a saltwater flood.
"...I'll tell you... this was probably one of the more scary events that we've gone through," says Martin...
