Wala Animal Sanctuary Inc. operators Karen Pohlner and Vince Lutjohn led the Hertford Street rescue from 3pm to nearly 10pm on Friday.

What started as a relatively routine rescue nearly became a logistical nightmare when Ms Pohlner realised none of the usual rescue ladders could reach the koala who was perched in an extremely tall tree.

Members of the community contacted Wala Animal Sanctuary Inc when they saw the koala stranded in a lone tree near a very busy central Ballarat road. 

“The concern was the animal was in a very built up area, so if he were to come down and tried to cross the road there was a risk he would be bowled over,” Ms Pohlner said. 

“He was as stressed as you can imagine and he was quite feisty as his first instinct is to survive.” 

When Ms Pohlner and Ms Lutjohn realised the tree was taller than their ladder – they were forced to call on their extensive contacts to help. However, being a Friday afternoon finding help in the area proved difficult.

Police were called for traffic control and a Geelong arborist attended. When the arborist realised the scenario was quite risky the Ballarat City Fire Brigade was called upon. 

Firefighters attended with their ladder – however the task still proved difficult.

A combined effort – where a  pole was used to persuade the koala to move further down the tree so he could be collected by a volunteer led to a successful rescue. 

“He was popped into a carrier and taken to a nice safe place,” Ms Pohlner said.

She said the one-hour rescue job was drawn out to nearly seven hours due to difficulties co-ordinating the people and resources needed to complete the rescue. 

“The koala numbers have definitely declined as urban sprawl has happened so it is important to keep them safe,” Ms Pohlner said.

Wala Animal Sanctuary Inc conducts around 2000 rescues a year.

To find out how to volunteer visit the Facebook page. 

Ms Pohlner has urged members of the community who see animals in distress in the Ballarat region to contact rescue workers on 0409 137 323.