Sydney: A koala that drew attention after being rescued from a wildfire in Australia has died, after failing to recover from his burns.
The koala, dubbed Lewis, had been taken to an animal hospital last week after a woman rescued the animal from the burning bushland in New South Wales, the state most affected by the bushfires, BBC reported.
A rescue video, which shows Toni Doherty, a grandmother of seven, using her shirt to wrap up the koala — was viewed globally.
New South Wales, with some 130 active blazes, has been the state worst hit by the wave of bushfires devastating Australia’s east coast, a situation aggravated by one of the worst droughts in decades.
Since July 1, fires in this state have killed six people and charred some 1.3 million hectares of land, besides causing the deaths of more than 1,000 koalas and thousands of farm animals, Efe news reported.
Dozens of fires also burn in the neighbouring state of Queensland and authorities have ordered evacuation in towns such as Noosa North Shore and Woodgate.
In recent years, forest fires in Australia have increased in intensity and experts link it to the effects of climate change.
