PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — The owner of an animal center in Madeira Beach is facing another bump in the road to recovery after a fire devastated the center last summer.
In July, a fire at the Alligator and Wildlife Discovery Center in Madeira Beach left several animals dead and the owner searching for a new place to house the surviving animals.
A few weeks after the fire, they found a temporary space. Now, about 160 animals are living in an empty bank in Madeira Beach, but the owner told us they have to move out by March 31, and they have nowhere to go.
Owner Sonny Flynn said the animals are her family.
“I’m not going to lose these babies. I lost over a hundred in the fire,” Flynn said.
She faces an uphill battle as they have to move 160 animals out of the temporary space. She is now looking for a new place to house the animals while they wait to move back into the original location at John's Pass.
Flynn expects construction to wrap up in November, but she needs a place for the animals until then. She is looking for a portable trailer or education module in Pinellas County.
Flynn encourages people to still come out and visit the animals in the meantime.
Click here for ways you can help support their rebuild and recovery.
