Deputies Help Rescue Manatee Mother and Calf in Florida

A mother manatee and her calf were rescued from a river in Florida on Wednesday, February 25.

According to a Facebook post from the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, the mother manatee was injured and needed medical care.

Units from the sheriff’s office worked with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) to help rescue the distressed manatees, while drone pilots with the sheriff’s office helped guide the operation from the air.

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Footage posted by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday shows the manatees being pulled up onto a boat out of the Orange River. After they were removed from the river, they were brought to ZooTampa to get medical care, the sheriff’s office said.

At least 25 manatees have died in the river in recent weeks, likely from cold stress, according to one local news report citing the FWC. Credit: Lee County Sheriff’s Office via Storyful