ONE YEAR LATER: Wild Animal Safari Park still rebuilding following EF-3 Tornado

PINE MOUNTAIN, Ga. (WTVM) - Wild Animal Safari Park is celebrating their recovery on the one-year anniversary of an EF-3 tornado that hit the park leaving substantial damage.

The president and Chief Executive Officer Lisa Brady for Parks! America and owns the park traveled from Ohio to celebrate.

According to her, a lot of work has gone into rebuilding and making the park even better than it was before it hit last year.

“It’s remarkable to be back here and see how much recovery you know that we’ve had,” she said.

On March 26, 2023 an EF-3 tornado hit Wild Animal Safari Park in Pine Mountain.

“Essentially went right through our walkabout and through our drive-through. We lost over 5,000 trees, almost 20 structures, and animal habitats were damaged,” Brady said.

“My first thought was oh my gosh, and I called my mom and I was like.. Mom, my zoo’s gone and it was just really hard,” said the zoo director Katie Harrison.

Zoo Director Katie Harrison was one of the first to take in the damage left behind and some of the animals who sadly didn’t make it.

Harrison also had to help tranquilize a liger and a tiger that escaped the enclosure following the storm and safely return them to a secure enclosure.

“It’s all kind of blurry in my brain at this point because it was all just adrenaline,” she said.

The park reopened after being closed for 20 days.

Brady said the year of rebuilding included clearing trees from the drive-through area of the park, fixing roofs, sidewalks, fencing, and rebuilding the giraffe barn, hyena enclosure, and bear enclosure.

However, she said they are still not finished.

“The restroom from last year was damaged and it’s torn down right now but by the July, August time frame of this summer, we’ll have a brand new restroom facility as well as this great new guest arrival experience,” she said.

Brady and Harrison both say they’re proud of their team.

“They were just all hands on deck. They were great, and now it’s been a year, and we have made so much progress. I love my team,” said Harrison.

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