Adorable moment a fireman battling bushfires rescues a distressed baby deer after finding her abandoned in the debris
- An abandoned baby deer has been rescued from the wreckage of a bushfire
- Fireman Michael Tiley was mopping up after a fire when he heard a child’s cry
- The Stanmore Rural Fire Brigade member followed the noise to find a baby fawn
- The animal was bundled into the cab and taken to a vet where it is under care
- Mr Tiley said the discovery had reinvigorated the team amid the bushfire turmoil
An abandoned baby deer has been miraculously pulled from the ashes of the devastating bushfires without injury.
Stanmore Rural Fire Brigade firefighters Michael Tiley, Joe Canning and Hazel Dean were called to a flare up of the fires, near Jimna, west of the Sunshine Coast, on Sunday.
But as the fire was contained, and Mr Tiley began moving burning material to make the area safe, he heard a strange noise echoing from the wreckage.
Michael Tiley and his colleagues from the Stanthorpe Rural Fire Brigade rescued a fawn from bushfire wreckage near Jimna last week
‘During the mopping up activity, I heard a noise that sounded like a small child crying,’ he wrote in a post on the Queensland Fire Emergency Services (QFES) Facebook page on Saturday.
‘I turned around to see this baby fawn walking straight towards me.
‘It was very distressed and overheated, yet I picked it up and we cooled it down with water.’
The fawn appeared to be abandoned, so the Rural Fire Brigade workers placed the female Red Deer in the open storage area behind the truck cab.
The little girl was taken to a vet to receive care and the firefighters were informed the mammal was only a number of weeks old.
The baby deer has been treated and is now being fed formula from a bottle every 3-4 hours.
Mr Tiley said the miraculous discovery had boosted morale among the firefighters as they continue to battle through horrific blazes.
Joe Canning (left) and Michael Tiley (right) bundled up the female red deer and took her to a receive veterinary care
‘For our brigade members, it was very satisfying to see something positive come from the utter devastation the fires have caused in the area,’ the fireman wrote.
Commentators applauded the men for their heroic actions and thanked them for their service.
‘Thank you for saving this precious little fawn and for all your hard work. I am in awe of the bravery and selflessness of firefighters,’ one woman wrote.
Another comment read: ‘Areas around Bundaberg are devastated as well with so much death and destruction so its lovely to here something positive. Thankyou for all your hard work and saving this precious baby.’
Red deer are the second largest of Australia’s wild deer species.
Calves have white spots at birth until that coat is replaced at about six weeks of age and turns a uniform brown.
Mr Tiley said finding the fawn in good health was uplifting for the members of the Rural Fire Brigade