In 2018, a skeleton crew stayed at a Malibu animal park as the Woolsey Fire arrived; 133 of its roughly 140 animals survived, including a giraffe and 80 horses

Thirty-two employees stayed behind at Malibu Wine Safari as the Woolsey Fire swept toward the property in November 2018, while large animals, including Stanley the giraffe, remained on site because their keepers considered moving them more dangerous than sheltering them in place. The park’s owners later said that about 135 of roughly 140 animals survived, including Stanley and around 80 horses. The property is at Saddlerock Ranch, in the mountains above Malibu, and was badly damaged as the fire moved through the area. Stanley had become the most recognizable animal there, and photographs of the giraffe standing near the flames spread rapidly online. The images prompted public concern that the animals had been abandoned after staff evacuated.Dakota Semler, whose family owned the park, told Reuters that employees remained with the animals throughout the fire, and said that transporting some of the exotic animals presented its own risks. A giraffe, for example, could not simply be loaded into an ordinary trailer, and moving frightened exotic animals during a fast-moving wildfire could cause injury or shock. The Woolsey Fire began on November 8, 2018, and moved quickly through Los Angeles and Ventura counties. The National Park Service records that the fire eventually burned almost 100,000 acres and caused widespread damage across the Santa Monica Mountains.Stanley stayed in an open areaThe park had decided to keep many of its larger animals on the property rather than attempt a last-minute evacuation, wherein Stanley and other animals were moved into areas with less vegetation and other fuel. A photograph that showed Stanley with flames and smoke in the distance became particularly alarming, and social-media users called for the giraffe to be moved.Local reporting after the fire found that Stanley had survived, with ABC7 Los Angeles reporting that the animals had been placed in a pasture with little fuel to burn as the fire approached. The park said its management and animal-care staff had prepared for evacuation but ultimately kept the animals on site.Reuters reported that three pigs, two parrots, an emu and a sheep were among the animals that died or were lost, which left the overwhelming majority of the approximately 140 animals alive. The collection included horses, a llama and camels as well as the exotic animals that drew visitors to the safari park. Barns and other structures were damaged or lost, which left the park’s animal-care facilities badly affected even though most of its animals survived.Moving the animals was not straightforwardWildfire evacuation plans are often designed around getting people out quickly, but exotic animal collections create another problem: many species cannot be transported easily under emergency conditions. Semler told Reuters that moving an 18-foot giraffe into a 12-foot trailer would carry obvious risks. Other large animals can become difficult to control when frightened, and the logistics of finding suitable vehicles and destinations become more complicated as a fire advances.The National Park Service says that Santa Ana winds pushed the fire south on its first day before it crossed the 101 Freeway and entered the Santa Monica Mountains. Almost 88% of the National Park Service land within the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area eventually burned. Workers stayed behind, cared for the animals and dealt with the fire as it reached the ranch.Stanley’s survival became the most visible part of the story because the giraffe was already well known to visitors and had a large social-media following, but the fire involved an entire collection of animals, not just one celebrity giraffe. Stanley was photographed alive and walking around the damaged ranch after the flames passed. The park’s surviving animals still needed care, while crews began dealing with destroyed buildings, burned enclosures and other damage left behind by the Woolsey Fire.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.