This koala survived after being struck by a car doing 60mph and dragged for 7 miles ... no wonder he's called 'Lucky'
A koala that cheated death after being hit by a car at 60 mph and dragged with his head jammed through the vehicle's grill for 7 miles has been dubbed Australia's luckiest marsupial.
The eight-year-old male koala, nicknamed "Ely 'Lucky' Grills" by rescuers, was struck by an unwitting motorist north of Brisbane and found only when the car stopped after being flagged down by another vehicle.
No ill effects: Australia Zoo Animal Hospital manager Gail Gipp with Koala 'Eli Lucky Grills' who miraculously survived a car accident
'To have him survive and virtually unscathed is quite miraculous,' Australian Wildlife Hospital spokewoman Carolyn Beaton said.
'Lucky' hung on during his ordeal with one arm and his trapped head.
He had to be freed with household scissors used like a fireman's 'jaws-of-life' to cut around the car's mesh grill with the horrified owner's permission, Beaton said.
She added: 'Whilst Lucky was in shock, he quickly recovered and was nearly better after a couple of hours rest and a feed.'
Lucky will stay at the hospital, set up by the late television wildlife and crocodile crusader Steve Irwin, for 45 days to recover from his experience and receive treatment for an infection.
Leo 'Lucky' Grills was an Australian actor and comedian best known for portraying the unconventional detective 'Bluey' Hills in the 1970s TV series Bluey.
No problems: Lucky was struck by an unwitting motorist north of Brisbane and found only when the car stopped after being flagged down by another vehicle
