Sea Tow captain steps in to save struggling green sea turtle off Florida's Gulf Coast

NAPLES, Fla. —

What started as just another day on the water turned into a race to help a creature that couldn't save itself.

Captain Sam Villani with Sea Tow was cruising about a half mile off the Naples Pier on a routine patrol when something caught his eye: a green sea turtle. However, he quickly realized it was in trouble.

"It's very rare, but it catches your eye, and it's pretty hard not to realize it's not just a coconut floating around out there," said Villani.

Villani spotted the turtle fighting its own buoyancy. It was stuck at the surface and unable to dive back beneath the water.

"You don't know if it got hit by a boat, if it got hit by a shark or what happened. It was just maybe some kind of internal issue. So, the first thing was to make sure that I wasn't going to further harm it, trying to help it," said Villani.

Villani called wildlife officers and carefully scooped up the struggling sea turtle.

"I remember looking at the turtle saying, 'Hey, buddy, I'm going to count to three. Either you're coming in the boat, or I'm going in the water' because I didn't know how heavy it was," said Villani.

After being carefully placed on his boat, the sea turtle enjoyed a smooth and safe journey back to shore. Villani then handed the turtle off to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at the Hamilton Harbor Fuel Dock, making sure it was in the right hands for a proper rescue and recovery.

"You have an oath as a mariner when you have a captain's license, anybody, anything you see in distress, you do your best to try to help it to the best of your ability, or try to get in contact with somebody that can," said Villani.

FWC says the sea turtle was taken to the Florida Aquarium.

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