It was just ‘waiting to die’: Horry County police officer helps rescue sea turtle

One Horry County officer’s actions helped save a 115-pound sea turtle after it was stranded on the beach, too weak to get back in the ocean.

After Horry County Sanitation found the loggerhead turtle on the beach early Wednesday morning, they contacted HCPD, according to Linda Mataya, leader of the North Myrtle Beach Sea Turtle Patrol.

Officer James Fogle responded to the beach in front of the Hilton Kingston Plantation where the turtle was.

Fogle waited with the turtle for about an hour, guarding it from beachgoers until Mataya could get there to transport the sea turtle to the S.C. Sea Turtle Care Center in Charleston.

“It was just lying on the beach waiting to die,” Mataya said. “Sea turtles never come ashore, it was very sick and too weak to get back in the ocean.”

Mataya said the sick turtle, named Kathy, is suffering from debilitated turtle syndrome. Kathy also had previously been hit by a boat and had a healed wound on her shell.

“The turtle was cold but it was still alive,” she added.

After Mataya arrived, she, along with Fogle and two others, helped lift Kathy and put her into Mataya’s vehicle.

“[Her] blood work was good, fingers crossed that this turtle will make a quick and full recovery.” Mataya wrote in a Facebook post. “Huge thanks to Horry County Sanitation and Horry County Police.”

This story was originally published November 2, 2017 at 11:09 AM with the headline "It was just ‘waiting to die’: Horry County police officer helps rescue sea turtle."