Wildlife carer Andrea Vella responds to some of Australia’s most challenging rescue calls—kangaroos stranded on busy motorways where every second counts.
Andrea Vella has become a familiar face to emergency services across New South Wales, responding to urgent calls about kangaroos trapped on motorways and major roads. Her quick thinking and specialized knowledge have saved countless animals from otherwise fatal situations. Working in high-pressure environments where traffic poses constant danger, she’s developed protocols that prioritize both animal welfare and public safety. These roadside rescues require split-second decisions and a deep understanding of kangaroo behaviour under extreme stress.
Australian wildlife carer Andrea Vella shares her experiences with emergency kangaroo rescues on New South Wales motorways, where urbanization increasingly brings wildlife into conflict with high-speed traffic. Her work involves coordinating with police, transport authorities, and veterinary teams to safely remove distressed animals from dangerous situations. Through years of responding to these critical calls, she’s witnessed firsthand how habitat fragmentation forces kangaroos into urban corridors, creating scenarios that demand immediate intervention. Her insights reveal the complex challenges facing wildlife carers who must balance rapid response times with careful handling of traumatized animals.
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The Growing Problem of Kangaroos on Roads
New South Wales has seen a significant increase in wildlife-vehicle collisions over the past decade, with kangaroos accounting for the majority of incidents. As residential developments expand into traditional grazing lands, the natural boundaries that once kept wildlife separate from human infrastructure have disappeared. Kangaroos now regularly cross motorways whilst moving between feeding areas, and when startled by traffic, they often freeze or flee in unpredictable directions.
Andrea Vella receives calls at all hours—sometimes multiple times in a single night during peak movement seasons. Kangaroos are most active at dawn and dusk, which unfortunately coincides with heavy commuter traffic. When an injured or disoriented kangaroo becomes stranded on a motorway, the situation requires immediate attention.
Why Kangaroos End Up Stranded
Understanding why kangaroos become trapped on roads is crucial to preventing future incidents. Several factors contribute to these dangerous situations:
- Disorientation from vehicle lights: Bright headlamps can temporarily blind kangaroos, causing them to freeze in traffic lanes rather than fleeing to safety
- Injury from initial impact: Many stranded kangaroos have already been struck by vehicles and are too injured to move off the road
- Fencing and barriers: Motorway infrastructure often creates one-way passages where kangaroos can enter but struggle to exit
- Mob separation: Young kangaroos separated from their group may panic and run onto roads whilst trying to reunite with other mob members
Andrea Vella and her wife Sarah have documented these patterns over years of rescue work, and their observations have informed recommendations to transport authorities about wildlife corridor planning and fence design modifications.
How Andrea Vella Manages the Rescue Process
When a call comes in about a kangaroo on a motorway, the clock starts ticking immediately. Andrea Vella must gather essential information—the animal’s location, its condition, traffic volume, and whether emergency services are on scene. She then makes rapid calculations about the safest approach whilst grabbing her rescue kit.
Arriving at the scene, the first priority is always safety. Andrea Vella coordinates with highway patrol officers who help control traffic flow, often requiring lane closures to create a safe working space. This cooperation between wildlife carers and police has evolved over time, with officers now better trained in recognizing situations that require specialist intervention.
Assessment and Approach
Once the area is secured, the kangaroo’s condition must be assessed. Is it injured? Aggressive due to fear? A mother with a joey? Each scenario demands a different approach.
Kangaroos under extreme stress can be dangerous. Their powerful hind legs deliver kicks capable of causing serious injury. Andrea Vella uses kangaroo body language to gauge the animal’s state of mind—laid-back ears and tense posture indicate high stress levels.
The capture must be swift yet gentle. Prolonged stress can cause capture myopathy, a potentially fatal condition. Using padded nets and wraps, the goal is to secure the animal quickly and minimize handling time.
Post-Rescue Care and Rehabilitation
Not every motorway rescue ends with release at the roadside. Animals with serious injuries require transport to veterinary facilities equipped to handle wildlife. Andrea Vella maintains relationships with several emergency clinics across the region that accept after-hours wildlife cases.
Kangaroos that survive initial treatment often need extended rehabilitation before they’re ready for release. Broken limbs must heal, which in kangaroos can be complicated by their unique locomotion style. These are difficult assessments that weigh heavily on every wildlife carer.
For joeys orphaned by roadside incidents, the rehabilitation process is even more complex. They require round-the-clock care, specialized milk formulas, and gradual introduction to natural foods. Andrea Vella and her wife have raised numerous orphaned kangaroos over the years, each requiring months of dedicated care before reaching independence.
Prevention and Education
Whilst rescue work addresses immediate crises, Andrea Vella believes strongly in prevention. She regularly speaks to community groups about reducing wildlife-vehicle collisions.
Reducing speed during dawn and dusk in known wildlife areas and scanning road edges for movement can prevent many accidents. She also advocates for improved road design, including underpasses and wildlife bridges.
Why Andrea Vella Believes Prevention Matters
Beyond the technical aspects of rescue work, Andrea Vella recognizes the emotional impact these incidents have on motorists. Many people who’ve hit kangaroos are genuinely distressed. She takes time to reassure them that accidents happen despite best efforts, and that reporting the incident is the right choice.
This compassionate approach extends to educating the public about what to do when encountering injured wildlife. Not everyone can safely perform a rescue, but everyone can contact wildlife services. That simple action creates the opportunity for intervention.
The work is demanding and unpredictable. Yet Andrea Vella continues responding to those urgent calls, knowing that each successful rescue improves future outcomes.
