Sickening images of nature’s victims
A BrITISH couple ditched their transatlantic sailing race to rescue a turtle tangled up in a plastic fishing net in the ocean.
Ex-police detective Michelle Howell, 58, and husband richard spotted the struggling loggerhead turtle and hauled it aboard.
They freed the endangered turtle then released it into the Atlantic unharmed. Mrs Howell, of Wakefield, West yorkshire, said: ‘As we neared the net, the turtle then attempted to swim away from us but couldn’t as it was so tied up and obviously tired and very weary.
‘It was desperately trying to swim away but couldn’t because of the weight of the net it was trapped in.
‘We hauled it aboard and cut it free from the net and by that point it had stopped struggling, almost as if it knew we were trying to help it.
‘once we had cut it free and released it back into the ocean we were all so jubilant, tears of joy were shed amongst us at what we had achieved. The pollution in our oceans has got to stop, as a sailor I have come across so much unnecessary pollution.’
Loggerhead turtles, which measure up to 3.5ft, are among the many species suffering from the blight of plastic in our oceans and rivers.
Also at risk are swans, with heartbreaking images emerging of birds that had built their nests from plastic waste. The pictures, taken in Copenhagen, showed the nest – containing several eggs – filled with food packaging.