When much of Santa Rosa California was ordered to evacuate as a result of the recent California wildfires, 77-year-old Peter Lang stayed behind and saved over a thousand animals instead.
Lang is the owner of Safari West Wildlife Preserve in Santa Rosa, California. When wildfires began blazing on October 8th, 2017, a large portion of the city had to be evacuated.
Although Lang urged his wife, employees, and overnight guests to evacuate to safety, the 77-year-old husband stayed behind to protect his eclectic mix of preserve animals— a mix which includes giraffes, zebras, cheetahs, and many, many more
In an interview with local media (via Express UK), Lang says, “I have a thousand souls I’m responsible for. It wasn’t even a decision. This is what I had to do.”
Using a regular garden hose, the 77-year-old senior worked throughout the night, tirelessly hosing hot spots, snuffing embers, and coaxing animals from enclosure to enclosure, reports Express UK.
In an interview with CBS San Francisco, Lang explains, “They wanted us to evacuate immediately. And everyone did but me.”
“I had maybe 10 garden hoses hooked together so that I could go from spot to spot when the fires would break out.”
And miraculously, as a result of the man’s dedication and love, every single animal survived!
That’s not to say the West Safari Wildlife Preserve went undamaged, however. Many items, such as the park’s tour buses and Lang’s personal home have been completely destroyed as a result of the flames, CBS San Francisco reports.
An update posted to the Safari West website on October 13th reads, “While we’re still in the midst of an active fire, things are relatively calm at the Safari West Wildlife Preserve. The animals are safe and accounted for with full bellies and plenty of water to drink.”
As news of Lang’s actions spread, Mate Varga, a former guest of the preserve, created a GoFundMe account for the park employees who have lost their homes yet to “continue to dedicate themselves to the preservation of the preserve.”
At the time of this writing, the GoFundMe stands at over $29,000— an amount raised by 438 people in only 4 days.
It’s amazing that 77-year-old Lang somehow managed to keep more than a thousand animals alive while equipped with only garden hoses.
Feel free to visit the Safari West update page for all news regarding the animals and these ongoing events. To donate toward providing housing to the Safari West employees affected by the fire, click here.
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