Remembering the Philadelphia Fire

This time last year, COVID-19 was still only a faint shimmer on the horizon for most people - an obscure disease that most of us hadn't heard of.  For many people, 2020 looked so full of promise and potential.  That was not the case for the staff of Germany's Krefeld Zoo.  A fire started by a Chinese lantern at a nearby New Year's celebration burned down their ape house, killing almost all of the inhabitants.

I suppose you could say that they were some of the first people to know that this year was going to be awful.

Now we've come to the one year anniversary of that tragedy.  This month is also the 25th anniversary of a similar tragedy, but one that hit much closer to home to me.  On Christmas Eve of 1995, a fire broke out at the Philadelphia Zoo, also at the primate house, resulting in the deaths of many animals.  Philadelphia magazine wrote a great article remembering the fire and its aftermath, including the zoo's rebirth, which I'll share here:

The Day The Great Apes Died: The Legacy of the 1995 Philadelphia Zoo Fire

I have no memories of the old primate house at Philadelphia; by the time I paid my first visit to the zoo, the building had already burned, leaving a raw wound in the middle of the park.  By the time I paid my second visit, the current building, the new PECO Primate Reserve, stood in its place.  Krefeld too is moving on from the tragedy of last year, with plans for change and renewal.  A building can be replaced, often with something even better.  Apes, however, leave holes in the hearts of their keepers, for which there is no substitute.  Even when new animals arrive that you love, they don't replace the memories of the old ones.

Everyone have a good night and a Happy New Year.  No flying lanterns, please.