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THE TAKEAWAY
- King Tides bring unsafe coastal flooding — but their unusually debased tides tin make hidden risks.
- Strong winds and receding h2o stranded a manatee connected a Florida sandbar.
- Local boaters helped wildlife rescuers show the manatee until it safely returned to deeper water.
YANKEETOWN, Florida – King Tides person lived up to their name, bringing unusually precocious h2o levels and coastal flooding crossed Florida — but residents aren’t the lone ones astatine risk, arsenic extreme debased tides endanger susceptible wildlife.
A Florida charter skipper witnessed the information firsthand erstwhile a manatee became stranded connected a fashionable sandbar adjacent Yankeetown successful West Florida, wherever the delicate oversea cattle spent hours exposed to the scorching sun.
Captain Katie Jo Davis said her husband, besides a charter vessel captain, was alerted by a chap boater astir a stranded manatee connected a sandbar.
The manatee was estimated to person been stranded connected the sandbar for astir 4½ hours earlier assistance arrived.
(Captain Katie Jo / Facebook / FOX Weather)
The brace launched their airboat, allowing them to navigate the shallow waters near exposed by the unusually debased tide, erstwhile they spotted the manatee stranded unsocial connected the sandbar.
"Since we were successful an airboat, we could thrust wherever it was existent shallow truthful we could spot the stranded manatee," Davis told FOX Weather. "It was hard to spot astatine first, but we were capable to get adjacent capable that we recovered it."
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Following guidance from wildlife officials, the experienced boaters contacted the professionals – pinpointing the manatee’s nonstop determination for rescuers with the University of Florida Marine Animal Rescue Program.
Stranded manatees tin rapidly go distressed and should beryllium reported to wildlife rescuers alternatively than pushed backmost into the water.
(Captain Katie Jo / Facebook / FOX Weather)
Davis said the manatee was breathing heavily, appeared sluggish and had disposable scratches. She added, "You could archer she was trying to propulsion toward the water."
The mates located the manatee astatine astir 11 a.m., and based connected the tide’s presumption connected the sandbar, Davis estimated the manatee had been stranded since astir 6:30 a.m. during the debased tide cycle.
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"We knew clip was of the essence," Davis said.
Being stranded retired of the h2o tin beryllium a decease condemnation for manatees.
A King Tide produced an unusually wide tidal range, portion beardown northeast winds pushed h2o distant from the Yankeetown shoreline, exposing the sandbar and leaving the manatee stranded until the rising tide returned it to deeper water.
(Captain Katie Jo / Facebook / FOX Weather)
The University of Florida Marine Animal Rescue Program says stranded animals tin rapidly go distressed and, without timely intervention, could go fatal for the threatened species.
As the experienced fishers waited, Davis realized that the tide was rapidly rising and estimated the h2o would scope the manatee wrong 2 hours.
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The tide yet filled the area, and rescuers stayed with the manatee until it was capable to aquatics distant connected its ain toward a adjacent heavy h2o channel.
Extreme precocious tides and unsafe debased tides
King Tides person brought coastal flooding to Florida, posing unsafe threats to residents during precocious tide — but the debased tide tin beryllium conscionable arsenic extreme.
King Tide cycles nutrient an unusually wide tidal range, with higher-than-normal precocious tides that person swamped coastal areas successful Florida with unsafe flooding, portion lower-than-normal debased tides that tin exposure sandbars and shallow channels that airs a superior menace to wildlife.
Traffic navigates done flooded roadway lanes on East Ocean Avenue successful Boynton Beach, Florida, connected October 26, 2026. High seasonal tides combined with elevated oversea levels pushed saltwater done coastal drainage systems, inundating roads, slowing commuter traffic, and creating question hazards crossed eastbound Palm Beach County.
(Christopher Beckett/NurPhoto via Getty Images / Getty Images)
NOAA advises radical who brushwood stranded oregon distressed wildlife to support their distance, debar touching oregon moving the carnal and instantly interaction the due section wildlife oregon marine-animal stranding network.
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