Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium staff enjoyed a unique slumber party as snow blanketed the metro . More than 20 staff members from the animal care and facilities teams slept overnight in the zoo’s brand-new aquarium from Saturday, Jan. 4 to Sunday, Jan. 5.
Their sleepover was about more than just team bonding and waking up in a winter wonderland: Staff chose to remain on site during the blizzard to continue caring for the zoo’s many animals — almost all of whom fare best in warmer climates.
“The animal staff was mainly responsible for going around and feeding and medicating any animals that needed medication the following morning,” said Sean Putney, the zoo’s CEO.
“We didn’t know if we would lose power of have other issues that needed to be addressed. So just having people on the grounds to address those things is important in those situations.”
Luckily, the zoo didn’t lose power during the storm — although it has backup generators on hand in case it ever does. A few members of each animal care team remained on site Sunday, providing food, water and medication to the zoo’s residents while it was closed to the public.