As fire raged nearby, a tiny town’s zoo animals were driven to safety

Associated Press

BIG BEAR, Calif. (AP) — The animals of the Big Bear Alpine Zoo are returning home after spending a week in Palm Springs evacuating from wildfires. Zookeepers began driving the assortment of birds, foxes and other rehabilitated animals back to Big Bear early Thursday morning. The animals were initially transported to the Living Desert Zoo and Garden last week as the Line Fire burned through the San Bernardino wilderness, bringing on hazardous air quality for the birds and small mammals. The Living Desert had previously hosted animals from the Big Bear zoo during a wildfire in 2002.