A fisherman hooked the rarest sea turtle, then saved it

A fisherman on the Low Battery in downtown Charleston hooked a Kemp's ridley sea turtle on July 25, then did nearly everything right. He avoided yanking it up by the hook, guided it near the Coast Guard Station at Tradd Street, and netted it. While the Island Turtle Team drove over, he moved the turtle to a shaded yard and poured water on it to prevent heat stress. Kemp's ridleys are the most endangered sea turtle, and this one, later named Chili at the South Carolina Aquarium Sea Turtle Care Center, was a healthy subadult nearly two feet long. Staff called it bright, alert and responsive. The hook came out without surgery. Chili turned out to be the pickiest eater in the hospital, taking only shrimp and squid, and only if the squid came first. On Aug. 26, Chili was released into the Gulf Stream, thrashing wildly and relieving itself on the handlers.