David Loffredo spent 17 years in Westport. He lives at Fairfield Beach now, but remains an avid “06880” reader.
Yesterday — during the wind and rain — he spotted a large turtle, wounded and in distress.
His wife Megan called around: Earthplace, the Maritime Aquarium, Mystic Aquarium, Fairfield Animal Control, a veterinarian.
Mystic asked Animal Control to take a look. By now it was dark. The officer said it was a loggerhead, probably 10 to 12 years old — the 3rd to wash up there in the past 2 years.
The officer thought she was dead. If so, the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection would be back to bury her right there.
At 10 p.m., — with the tide rising — a crew from Mystic Aquarium’s Animal Rescue Unit arrived.
They determined the turtle was quite healthy, though perhaps disoriented in the storm.
They took her, and warmed her up. They will put her on a flight to Georgia or South Carolina.
Loffredo knows the turtle team in Charleston. They’ll call Mystic today, and see if they can take the rescued animal.
Sergeant Mike Paris stood watch during the transfer. He spoke with Loffredo about the challenges of this year. A 15-year veteran of the force and the son of a Bridgeport police officer, he’s been in the thick of COVID and the summer of protests.
“2020 has not been great,” Loffredo says. “But in a year that’s taken so much, it’s nice to give something back.”
The loggerhead turtle (background) and her rescuers. (Photos/David Loffredo)
So grateful to read this story today! Thank you for deciding to feature it. And thank you to the amazing folks who came out in that storm to help this beautiful animal.
What a beautiful, touching story. It makes me so happy to know there are such awesome people (and creatures) in this world!
How nice to read of this rescue! And good for David who called multiple places to find someone to help. Good hearts do abound.
Glad Mystic Rescue got there in time and saved the turtle’s life, and so glad Dave Loffredo was persistent in getting help.
Fairfield Animal Control doesn’t have most competent staff — they killed a pet dog because an officer decided it was a coyote earlier this month. He didn’t even bother to check to see if it had a microchip (which it did), they just killed it. The dog didn’t even look like a coyote. So I wouldn’t ever trust their judgement on the life signs of a turtle.
A wonderful and indeed uplifting story! Thank you to all that advocated for him and his safety. Hopefully Mr. Loffredo will keep us updated about the loggerhead’s condition and ultimately his return to swim freely in the ocean.
The Loffredos are good people! 🙂
It’s hard to describe how wonderful it is to see stories like this. There are so many good people out there, helping the helpless, whether two legged or four legged. Thanks for putting this up Dan. Congrats to all involved.
How wonderful is this !!
Everyday heroes
Love this. Thanks for the report Dan.
Thank you to the couple that spotted her and did not give up on finding help . Thank you to the Mystic team for all their help in returning her to her natural habitat.
Great story!
Thanks to all involved in saving this sea turtle…living in Pawleys Island, SC we have teams of volunteers who spend the summer monitoring new nests, counting eggs and eventually watching the big reveal. And yes, huge shout out to the turtle team in Charleston…they do amazing work.
What a special beautiful story! Thanks to all!
A wonderful and uplifting feature! Thank you for sharing and mentioning the volunteers and the Mystic Aquarium. The pictures tell the story and remind us how vital it is to be guardians of our wildlife.
Made my day!
Hooray for all!!!
Thank you all for just not walking away from this beautiful creature. Made my Day!
AWESOME ALL THE WAY AROUND!
I love these stories. It restores my faith in the humans!
wonderful story, made my day!
Wow, brings a joy to all of us.
Don Bergmann
If it was healthy why would it not survive up here?
Agree with the many comments here. Glad someone came to the turtles rescue. This story and the one about the little owl that was found in the Christmas tree for Rockefeller Center, are very uplifting. Apparently the owl was in the tree when cut down and was found upon arrival at the Center, someone rescued him, and found a wildlife rehabilitation center where the owl was transported to. After a few days, (he was not injured, just dehydrated and hungry) he was released back into the wild.
Josh- I believe they do better in warmer waters. See excerpt from Wikipedia:
Loggerheads occupy waters with surface temperatures ranging from 13.3–28 °C (56–82 °F) during non-nesting season. Temperatures from 27–28 °C (81–82 °F) are most suitable for nesting females
Mike Paris is Sgt ( and an animal lover)
David and Megan Loffredo are my heroes!
Cool story!