Sanibel Island unveils new sea turtle hospital to save injured wildlife

SANIBEL ISLAND, Fla. (WINK)—A high-tech hospital for sea turtles has opened on Sanibel Island.

Architect Rory Connors, who served as project coordinator, said this wasn't a typical assignment. He's used to designing houses, commercial buildings, and offices—not turtle life support facilities.

"Oh, I had no idea what I was talking about, which was awesome," Connors said.

The sea turtle hospital was built from scratch and required assembling many puzzle pieces. Connors said he learned quickly that sea turtles produce a lot of waste, which meant the facility needed extensive infrastructure.

"It's just miles and miles of pipes and filters and water heaters and pumps and other things like two different filtration systems for each tank," Connors said.

The facility features four large tanks that can hold up to 20 adult sea turtles. A smaller tank is designated specifically for hatchlings.

Chris Gorman, a wildlife rehabilitator at CROW, said the facility will help save many sea turtles. Sea turtles face constant threats in their natural habitat, including predator attacks and shark attacks, as well as human impacts such as entanglement in fishing gear and fishing line wrapped around their flippers.

"We couldn't be happier that this facility is going to be absolutely amazing, and we'll be able to help save a lot of sea turtles because of it," Gorman said.

The hospital is equipped with a lift system that can hold up to 2,000 pounds, making it capable of handling even the largest sea turtles. The facility will help bridge the gap for hospitals between Sarasota and the Florida Keys.

"There's no better feeling in this job than when we're able to release one of our animals back into the wild where they belong," Gorman said. "We're just trying to help boost their populations and give these animals a second chance if they come in sick or injured."

Connors said it was rewarding to see the CROW team's excitement on opening day. Gorman was beaming during interviews, and the entire team was thrilled to finally have the facility operational.