Thousands of cold-stunned sea turtles were rescued by a team of volunteers and taken to a convention center due to the record freeze in Texas. They will be released when the waters are less freezing.
Along the Texas coast, countless sea turtles have been stunned by the cold, but thankfully they have not been forgotten. Faced with this potential tragedy, volunteers have scoured the shoreline and are filling their vehicles to get them to safety.
The record freezing wave that hit Texas in recent days has caught off guard not only the inhabitants of the country, who have to deal with continuous blackouts and accidents, but even thousands of sea turtles, not used to such cold temperatures . Thus, many specimens flocked to the Texan beaches of South Padre Island, where fortunately they were recovered by several volunteers. Animal rights activists have already taken 4.700 of them to take them inside the structure of a convention center.
At the moment they are inside water-filled tanks waiting to return to the ocean when the waters are less cold.
Sea Turtle rescue underway at the South Padre Island Convention Center. #sopadre #seaturtle
Posted by Ed Caum on Monday, February 15, 2021
“This is an unprecedented event,” says Wendy Knight, executive director of the Sea Turtle Inc research and conservation center, who led the team of volunteers.
The footage shot by Ed Caum, executive director of the South Padre Island Convention and Visitors Bureau, shows the floor of the convention center covered with an expanse of sea turtles of all sizes:
Good Morning from South Padre Island Convention Centre where volunteers have rescued hundreds of sea turtles shocked by…
Posted by Ed Caum on Tuesday, February 16, 2021
“We took them to the convention center to restore internal temperatures. We have recovered many, now we will try to save them ”explains Caum.
In fact, due to too cold temperatures, the turtles go into hypothermia and go into a state of daze, unable to move easily.
The record-breaking polar vortex in Texas
Texas is facing an unprecedented cold spell these days. Due to the polar vortex formed on the border between Canada and the United States, the thermometer dropped below -18 degrees. Such cold temperatures have not been recorded in a generation, as AccuWeather meteorologist Brandon Buckinham pointed out.
This record freeze has caused a lot of inconvenience in Texas, where millions of citizens have been without electricity, a situation that has led President Joe Biden to approve the state of emergency. And because of the icy roads, about 100 car accidents are occurring in the country every day.
In short, the consequences of climate change are increasingly evident and dramatic.
Source: Reuters/ABC News
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