On A Wing And A Prayer|ABC News 4

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On A Wing And A Prayer

posted 5:06 pm Mon October 22, 2007 - Awendaw

tags: ribbon cutting • mark sanford • jim elliot • international center for birds of prey

Last week the International Center for Birds of Prey made headlines for treating an injured bald eagle, and Monday was the center's official ribbon cutting ceremony.

“What we realized is that there were numerous birds injured every year in South Carolina and there was nowhere for them to go to get professional care,” said Jim Elliott, International Center for Birds of Prey Executive Director.

That was the vision for the ICBP back in 1991 when they treated eight birds, and now with the new facility they will treat nearly 400 birds per year.

“It’s a remarkable capability in the event of an oil spill. Which we sure don't hope for off the coast of South Carolina,

Georgia

or Florida, but in the event one came there has a ready response mechanism in place,” said Mark Sanford, South Carolina Governor.

The brand new Avian Medical Center in Awendaw was brought about by a tragic oil spill in 1999.

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In the future it will help to avert a similar disaster.

“It's very significant for what it can do. We were just talking a moment ago.

You walk in there and there are miniature operating rooms just like you would see at the hospital,” Sanford said.

Conservation and being mindful of the ecology in the Lowcountry were popular topics at the ribbon cutting ceremony.

“Obviously being a native here, I like so many others, native or not, have come to appreciate this sensitive area that we're in. It's a very special ecosystem that we enjoy here,” Elliott said.

“Whether it's a species of a bird, a fish, or a frog, if something disappears, it impacts this ecological balance that is a lot more tightly wound than people realize,” Sanford explained.

The center is a non profit that will help sick and injured birds, and later this year invite the public to view their 90 or so captive birds.

The prognosis on the injured eagle, its chest wounds are healing nicely, but the center is still cautious about its elbow injury.

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