B.C. workers helping to rebuild and clean up the Calgary Zoo

A number of workers from B.C. along with local contractors have offered their assistance to rebuild the Calgary Zoo.

About 25 workers from B.C. were out in Calgary working on a development for Embassy Bosa, but superintendent Pat Johnson said that development is now completely flooded.

“We have all these available workers,” he said, “and we know the zoo is in bad shape.”

Johnson, along with assistant site superintendent Claude Dabin, said they have about 32 workers in total, but that number will climb to over 50 as more workers arrive tomorrow. There will be workers from B.C. and Alberta helping out.

The Calgary Zoo was badly damaged after a flood ripped through St. Patrick’s Island.

The City of Calgary was placed in a state of local emergency, and access roads to the zoo were closed.

Staff even risked their lives to stop a hippo from escaping into the Bow River.

Johnson said a lot of structures in the zoo were badly damaged.

“It’s pretty bad,” he said. “There is a lot of mud.”

The workers will be helping out for at least a week.