It takes a great deal of time and energy to prepare your home for an impending storm — making sure your home is secure, that you have an ample supply of food and water, and, if you have pets, making sure they are kept inside and safe.

So, can you imagine the work that is involved with preparing a facility filled with animals, like the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo?

“The safety of our staff and the animals in our care is the topmost concern for BAMZ,” said head zoo keeper, Tricha Cross. “There is an extensive hurricane preparedness plan which ramps up as the storm gets closer and goes into full force once it is confirmed that the Island will be affected. A full-time zoo keeper, an aquarist and facility technician volunteer to stay in the most secure part of the facility and be here throughout the storm — they are the first ones here in the event major damages occur and need to be attended to immediately.”

Special care is taken with each and every animal to determine the best way to care for them and protect them during the storm.

“Nearly all of the animals in the zoo already have secure holding areas in which they regularly spend their nights. The animals can be locked in these holdings during times of bad weather to ensure their safety. Most of our animals were kept inside for the duration of the storm. However, some animals, like our flamingoes and multiple species of duck, do not do well herded into a building. They can actually do more harm to themselves being locked inside than can occur being allowed to ‘weather the storm’ outside, so those animals are allowed to stay in their exhibit enclosures where they are comfortable and can cope with the storm the same way they would if they were in the wild.”

There are equal challenges for the Aquarium staff, who not only had to go through their regular hurricane preparedness measures as Gonzalo approached, but also work around the ongoing construction to the Aquarium Display Hall roof and pick up from the damage caused by Tropical Storm Fay which tore down lighting fixtures, tarpaulins and other equipment that had been out during Fay’s visit.

Typically, the aquarists will fill barrels of salt water to store for after the storm, move the food from the prep kitchen to the walk-in freezer, which has a generator, and prepare special foods that will store longer. They also need to make sure that our aquatic animals are protected from any possible exposure and danger.

“We prepared for the worst, and we’re glad we did,” explained plant manager, Roger Hollis, who is in charge of the physical operations and maintenance of the property.

In the end, the property received minimal damage, including a number of trees being brought down in the Caribbean exhibit, a small portion of the roof from the Australasia exhibit being blown up on to the netting over the Madagascar exhibit, and a lot of debris everywhere. The worst damaged occurred along the Harrington Sound coast, with extreme surf causing damage to the Coastal Walkway and creating small sinkholes in the Discovery Cove playground and near one of the docks. Thankfully, the storms only caused some disruption with the roof replacement, which began in earnest at the beginning of October.

“Our staff are incredibly dedicated and passionate about what they do,” said Dr Ian Walker, Principal Curator of BAMZ. “I am extremely proud of everyone who pulled together and achieved a colossal amount in a short period of time. We pride ourselves on opening the facility quickly after major storms — this time we had to do it twice in the space of a week while also contending with a major fundraiser and the start of the aquarium roof renovation during the same month. I cannot praise the staff enough — they are a great team!“