A lifeguard transports a Green Sea Turtle back to the ocean after it was caught off Huntington Beach Pier. (Courtesy HB Lifeguards)
By LAYLAN CONNELLY | [email protected] | Orange County Register
A rare sea turtle was caught by a fisherman late Sunday, Aug. 27, off the Huntington Beach Pier, and after it was pulled up 30 feet from the water, lifeguards were able to release it back into the ocean.
“You never know what the ocean is going to deliver on your front door step,” said Marine Safety Officer Doug Leach, who was on duty Sunday evening. “We see it all.”
Lifeguards determined it was a Green Sea Turtle. They have been known to live along the San Gabriel River bordering Long Beach and in recent months have popped up in places such as Dana Point Harbor and between surfers at nearby Doheny State Beach.
Leach said in his 18 years on the job, it is only the third one he’s seen.
“I know there’s one that lives in Huntington Harbor, that I’ve seen, but it’s sort of random for one to be here,” he said. “There’s a very small population of these in Southern California.”
He said lifeguards were notified by a bystander on the pier at about 6:30 p.m. that someone had pulled the turtle onto the pier. He said they didn’t want to throw it back into the ocean for fear that the 30-foot drop would injure the creature.
Lifeguards did a quick Google search and said the turtle seemed fine. Leach estimated it weighed about 40 pounds.