Orange County

FWC rescues injured manatee with newly donated transport truck

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — An injured 10-foot long, 1,025-pound manatee made his way from the Florida Keys to Orlando, thanks to a transport truck recently donated to Florida wildlife officials.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials said their staff used the brand-new truck donated by Florida Power & Light to move the injured manatee from Marathon to SeaWorld Orlando on Tuesday night.

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“Rescuing manatees remains a top priority for FWC and this new truck helps to support this important conservation work,” officials said in a social media post.

Wildlife officials said the public can help by reporting injured, sick or dead manatees to the FWC Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-3922 or by purchasing a “Save the Manatee” license plate.

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Sarah Wilson

Sarah Wilson, WFTV.com

Sarah Wilson joined WFTV Channel 9 in 2018 as a digital producer after working as an award-winning newspaper reporter for nearly a decade in various communities across Central Florida.