Fundraiser for fire-hit wildlife centre tops £14,000
More than £14,000 has now been raised to help rebuild a wildlife centre where animals died in a fire.
Gentleshaw Wildlife Centre in Eccleshall was closed for three days after the blaze last month, which killed three giant tortoises, a meerkat and around 15 fruit bats.
Volunteers have been working hard to repair the damage caused by the fire, which ripped through three enclosures after being started by a fault in the electrical heating system.
A GoFundMe page set up by Jenny Morgan received £8,230 from 429 donors in 11 days, while a JustGiving page organised by Amy Scholey raised £820, and a Facebook fundraising page has raised £5,080.
Director Jenny Morgan posted on social media saying: "Oh my goodness! I can't quite believe everyone's amazing generosity.
"Thank you from the bottom of my heart. We can now look at not only replacing the lost enclosures but improving some of our original ones, which was put on hold due to the fire damage.
"Thank you, every one of you, for every single penny. Follow our Facebook page to keep updated, see where your money is going and watch the rebuild that you have made possible."
Basil the meerkat died in the fire while his partner Sybil escaped and the sanctuary is now on the hunt for a new partner for her.
