FORT MYERS BEACH, Fla. -- A quick response from a local U.S. Coast Guard crew helped save the life of a dolphin that leaped into a boat near Fort Myers Beach.
According to the Coast Guard, a boater in Back Bay contacted them at 1 a.m. Thursday, saying a dolphin jumped out of the water and landed in a dinghy attached to their sailboat.
"At first he thought he got hit by another boat, that's how loud it was," said Petty Officer Michael Miller.
Crews from Coast Guard Station Fort Myers Beach arrived to help the dolphin get back in the water.
"And it kind of knew that we were there to help him, he wasn't struggling, he wasn't flopping around, he just waited until we could help him off," said Miller.
Miller says he's rescued stranded seals and turtles, but never a Dolphin. He commended the 5 man crew for successfully saving the animal.
Anyone who sees stranded marine life is asked to call the Coast Guard or FWC to help rescue it.
