Florida deputies rescue 144-pound sea turtle that was struck by boat
A 144-pound green sea turtle is recovering after it was struck by a boat in the Intracoastal Waterway in South Florida, officials said.
The Indian River County Sheriff's Office shared the rescue of turtle in a Facebook post Tuesday. A fisherman called deputies Sunday to report a large injured sea turtle, TCPalm reported. The fisherman said he noticed the turtle had a cut across its shell, the website reported.
A marine unit of the Indian River County Sheriff's Office used a large net to capture the turtle, which was transported to a nearby fire station, the Sheriff's Office wrote on Facebook.
The turtle was then transported south to a Loggerhead Marinelife Center rescue facility in Juno Beach.
Employees at the center nicknamed the turtle "Blaze," Lauren Eissey, a spokeswoman for the center, told TCPalm.
"The turtle is floating due to a large amount of gas in its intestines," Eissey told the website. "There is evidence of unintended boat strikes that have caused some nerve damage."
