As record cold temperatures continue to impact Texas, causing power outages and water shortages across the state, a group of dedicated volunteers have taken it upon themselves to rescue thousands of endangered sea turtles from the waters of South Padre Island. The resort town in southern Texas rarely gets too cold long enough to threaten sea turtles, who need warm waters to survive. But with temps dipping down to freezing and still hovering in the 40s, something had to be done to keep the creatures warm.
So far, according to NPR, nearly 4,500 sea turtles have been brought indoors since Sunday by volunteers at organizations like Sea Turtle, Inc., a sea turtle rescue operation, and the South Padre Convention Center, where the overflow of turtles are being kept. Sea Turtle, Inc. lost power, but thanks to a commercial generator brought in by SpaceX, have been able to keep their facility warm enough for the rescued turtle patients who already resided there and the influx of new rescues before they got too full to take more.
Volunteers have been working hard to save as many sea turtles as possible, even though many of these people are struggling with losing electricity, heat, and water themselves. Using their own cars and trailers, they have been transporting the turtles to safety a dozen or two at a time.
Lara (@lara_hand) on Twitter shared a thread about how her retired mother spends winters volunteering Sea Turtle, Inc. and how they’re rescuing turtles during the cold snap. Her photo of the back of her Subaru filled with sea turtles drives home the dedication of the volunteers who are working to save these creatures.
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