By Michelle Bliss
09-07-10 – With a new facility set to open in January, this fall should be the last stressful hurricane season for volunteers at the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Hospital on Topsail Island.
Right now, the hospital has only 800 square feet for housing 25 turtles, a handful of which are more than 150 lbs.
It also floods easily. During Hurricane Floyd, 30 inches of polluted water pooled around the turtles' tanks. Luckily, the turtles had been evacuated.
Hospital founder Jean Beasley says the new building will protect against flooding and she hopes it will provide a safe haven for other animals as well.
"What we're hoping is that if people bring their pets in crates, we would be able to house them so that they could continue onto a shelter close by."
The new building won't be fancy, it's a warehouse with concrete floors, but the turtles will have 12,500 square feet to call home.