[h=1]Dramatic Florida manatee rescue part of winter reality shift in Deep South (+video)[/h] Seeking respite from the enduring cold, 19 manatees crawled hundreds of yards into underground pipe. Rescuers said it took ?a village and an Air Force base? to rescue the hefty beasts.
[h=3]By
Patrik Jonsson, Staff writer February 24, 2015[/h] ... ?Our biologists said it took a village and an Air Force base? to get the animals out, says Brandon Basino, a spokesman for the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, in St. Petersburg, Fla.
He said rescue groups included Satellite Beach fire and police departments, state biologists, Sea World, a group of divers called Black Water Divers, and airmen from nearby Patrick Air Force Base. Rescuers used backhoes and even a ladder truck to extract animals that can weigh up to 1,200 pounds.
