MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, FLA. (WSVN) - An American Airlines employee volunteered to transport an injured turtle to the Turtle Hospital in the Florida Keys for recovery.
Khepri the sea turtle was found upside down and barely conscious on a rocky sea cliff in Saint Thomas on Feb. 28.
“They thought he was dead. They really did. When they got down there and turned him over, he like gasped for air, like, ‘wow, this is a miracle,'” said Mark Nelson.
Nelson works as a General Manager of American Airlines in the U.S. Virgin Islands and volunteered to bring the turtle to South Florida for further rehabilitation.
“I’m going to check him out, make sure he’s stable for travel. I’m going to check a heart rate, going to put some lube on his eyes and get them dry in a nice comfortable tub to make the drive down to the Keys where we’ll have a veterinarian check him out,” said Bette Zirkelback, manager of the Turtle Hospital.
His journey to South Florida was said to be a difficult one.
Khepri bled for three days straight after he was found and suffered a massive injury to his right front flipper.
“The flipper, just a quick look, doesn’t look to be necrotic, which would mean dying, so I think there is some hope that we can save the flipper,” said Zirkelback.
Once found, he was kept at Coral World in Saint Thomas for two weeks where he stayed out of the water to regain his blood and strength.
When he was deemed safe enough to travel is when Nelson and Khepri made their trip to Miami.
“He may or may not need surgery. Some good news is if he were to lose that flipper a sea turtle can go back into the wild,” said Zirkelback.
Officials said with a injury like the one Khepri is suffering from he probably will not be brought back into the wild for a few months.
“Just the collaborative effort of Coral World, the folks in Saint Thomas, American Airlines working with the Turtle Hospital, the veterinary staff on both sides is just incredible. It’s a wonderful feeling,” said Zirkelback. “This world’s oldest species, the sea turtle, has been on this planet for over 200 million years. They’re resilient. All these people working to save them, it just makes you feel good.”
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