Ernst was hit by a car on the Bruxner Highway just east of Richmond Hill Rd. Despite the drivers best efforts to stop and avoid him, there was little choice due to the amount of traffic on the road. He rolled right under the car.

Fortunately for Ernst, whist the incident looked bad he got off lightly. He was also very lucky because of the quick thinking of the driver who stopped after hitting him and contained him in a blanket. Friends of the Koala was called and a rescuer was immediately sent.

Ernst was brought into the Care Centre. A quick initial assessment showed superficial injuries. His ear was not crooked because of the car hit but rather a congenital defect.

A thorough assessment at Uralba St Vets under anesthetic indicated there were no broken bones but he did have fluid on his lungs and his mouth had pus in it. While the pus in his mouth was not related to the accident it was a concern as this has been seen in a more advanced form in other koalas from the Northern Rivers so we wanted it to be throroughly checked out. It was decided to transfer him to the Australian Wildlife Hospital to keep a close eye on his mouth.

After being cared for at the Australian Wildlife Hospital, Ernst was returned to Friends of the Koala and successfully released on 6 August. If you would like to receive information on Ernst and the story of his return to the wild please click on the links below to offer your support which will be put directly towards the care of koalas in need.

If you would like to Support Ernst, Click here to download a form to print out and post in.

To Support Ernst online, Click here, follow the prompts and put Ernst's name in as koala of your choice.