Photo Credit: Mitchell Thomas
Mitchell Thomas, 19, shares his great story of saving an orphaned baby manatee while volunteering with Wildtracks Manatee Rehabilitation Center in Belize.
According to BuzzFeed News, Thomas and the staff of Wildtracks took turns supporting ‘Mitch’ in a recovery pool around the clock for a week as he regained his strength.
“All the volunteers took turns; one person sitting in the water and one person sitting out of the water to time his breaths and get help if needed. I remember sitting in the pool with him in the chilly water in the dark at 3am and thinking there was no where else I would rather be,” said Thomas.
Since Thomas was the one responsible for saving the manatee, the conservation and research non-profit named the manatee ‘Mitch’.
Photo Credit: Mitchell Thomas
‘Mitch’ is currently sharing a pool with another rescued manatee calf at Wildtracks.
“It’s great knowing that he will one day be returned to the wild where he belongs,” Thomas said.
Awesome Ocean would like to congratulate Mitchell Thomas for his work to save an orphaned manatee and for proving young people can have just as much positive influence as seasoned rescue veterans.
Read more on ‘Mitch’ the manatee from our source, Buzzfeed News.