MADEIRA BEACH, Fla. — An early-morning fire at a Florida wildlife center has resulted in a “large loss of animal life,” fire officials in Madeira Beach said.
Heavy fire and thick smoke were already billowing when firefighters arrived at the Alligator & Wildlife Discovery Center on Thursday morning, Fire Chief Clint Belk told WFTS.
The wildlife center housed more than 250 animals, according to its website.
A post on the center’s Facebook page said that nearly all of the animals were gone.
The center housed “lizards, small mammals, amphibians, turtles and tortoises, fresh and saltwater marine life, and of course….alligators,” according to its website.
It was founded in 2011 as an alligator attraction, but its name was changed in 2020 to show the focus on education and conservation of all animals. It was licensed by the USDA and various Florida agencies.
About 95% of the animals at the center were “pet surrenders because people didn’t know how to take care of them, or they weren’t able to take care of them,” the center’s owner, Sonny Flynn, told WTSP.
All of the mammals inside the building died while many of the reptiles were hurt.
“They didn’t deserve this. This is my whole life,” Flynn told the news station. “They all have names, they all have personality, I come in every morning and talk to them like Dr. Dolittle.”
