WILMINGTON, N.C. — Members from the U.S. Coast Guard and National Park Service rescued a loggerhead sea turtle Sunday in Oregon Inlet.
Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector North Carolina in Wilmington received word from a good Samaritan boater the turtle was tangled in a line and dragging a plastic bucket in the vicinity of Bonner Bridge.
A National Park Service agent measures a loggerhead sea turtle near the Bonner Bridge, Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer Matt Strucic)
A 24-foot Special Purpose Craft crew from Coast Guard Station Oregon Inlet, along with a National Park Service agent with a degree in zoology, were sent to free the turtle and assess its condition.
The crew arrived on scene, took the turtle aboard and freed it from the line. The NPS agent took measurements, collected data and determined the turtle to be in good health with minimal injuries.
The loggerhead was then released.
Click the photo for more from the rescue.
