900-pound leatherback sea turtle rescued by Coast Guard in Nantucket Harbor
NANTUCKET -- A 900-pound leatherback sea turtle was rescued from almost certain death by the U.S. Coast Guard in Nantucket Harbor this weekend.
The enormous sea creature was spotted by boaters in Nantucket Harbor on Saturday afternoon. The sea turtle was entangled in line and buoys, dragging four cinder blocks along the Harbor bottom.
The gear turned out to be so-called "spat bags," which were put out by the town's Natural Resources Department to collect young scallops.
But after getting some guidance from the Marine Mammal Alliance Nantucket, four Coast guardsmen were able to untangle the big turtle and set her free.
A 900-pound female leatherback sea turtle that was discovered severely entangled in #Nantucket Harbor was freed Saturday afternoon by members of @BrantPointCG
— Nantucket Current (@ACKCurrent) June 11, 2022
The turtle was not only entangled but was dragging four cinder blocks along the seafloor that were attached to the lines pic.twitter.com/EoBOUtrRmz
"It was the biggest turtle I'd ever seen and pretty amazing it had made it all the way to the Head of the Harbor," Coast Guard Petty Officer Chad Austin said.
Town officials are calling the whole incident a "freak" occurrence, adding this is the first time this has happened.