Turtle rescued after bag swallow
A SEEMINGLY lifeless green turtle had fisherman and Red Hot Thai owner Brett Kook from Kingscliff hearing alarm bells on Friday.
He found the turtle floating near Five Mile Reef.
"Something seemed really wrong," he told My Daily News.
"My son Josh and I thought it was dead.
"But on closer inspection we realised it was kicking slightly."
The pair went into rescue mode, retrieving the turtle from the water.
After calling Tim Jack Adams, from Watersports Guru, the turtle was brought into Kingscliff by Mr Cook and his son where it stayed in Mr Adam's bath tub until the Sea Bird Rescue crew arrived from Ballina with Rochelle Ferris in charge.
The green turtle has been called "Macs" after the local conservation group founded by Mr Adams, Michael Manley and Tom Bowling and will now be treated at the Ballina Turtle Hospital.
"We are hoping it will be well enough to be released in late September," Mr Adams said.
The Green turtle that may have been an inhabitant of Cook Island is between 15 and 20 years of age and may be suffering from starvation due to indigestion of plastic bags.
"We are also are hoping that our new mascot will be healthy enough to be released back to Cook Island on the public launch of MACS in the Kingscliff Community Hall on the night of September 29," Mr Adams said.
