On June 14, Neco Marine boat operators Mers and Stein spotted the rarely seen turtle.
Reports said that the next day, the turtle was again spotted in the same area and because it looked like it has trouble diving down, it was taken out of the water and was brought to the Dolphin Pacific facility for observation.
Dolphin Pacific staff Billy Watson cleaned the crude oil off from the turtle using detergent soap.
According to the report, the oil has burned and damaged the outer layer of the turtle’s shellandskin and covered the whole inside of its mouth.
The turtle was released in one of the enclosures to determine if it could be released, but it was observed that the turtle had too much air trapped inside to be able to stay down, and had a break in its right flipper, which will have to heal first.
The turtle also is being force fed because of the presence of oil in its mouth.
Olive Ridleys swim in open ocean eating jellyfish, crabs and fish, and are uncommon in the western Pacific, nesting as far away as India, Mexico and South American countries.
Environmental Quality Protection Board personnel and Koror State Rangers law enforcer has been dispatched around the area of the facility to determine where the oil that covered the turtle came from.
