Three fishermen awarded for protecting turtle eggs, rescuing dolphins in Labuan

LABUAN - Three local fishermen were awarded a Certificate of Appreciation by the Fisheries Department of Labuan for protecting turtle eggs and rescuing dolphins on the shores of Labuan, today.

Two of them, Sahary Abd Halim and Elly Madi, were about to embark on a fishing trip at Kampung Sungai Labu coastline when they stumbled upon a lizard digging a hole in the sandy beach late afternoon on Sept 23.

Curiosity piqued, they decided to investigate further and were astonished to find a clutch of turtle eggs inside the hole.

Recognising the importance of their find, Sahary and Elly wasted no time and promptly alerted the Fisheries Department of Labuan.

Thanks to their swift action, a total of 106 eggs belonging to the critically endangered Hawksbill sea turtle were unearthed from the beach and immediately transferred to the Pulau Rusukan Turtle Hatchery Centre.

Another fisherman, Osman Khamis, on the other hand, was going about his usual morning fishing routine at Layangan Beach on May 15 when he heard unusual sounds and found four dolphins stranded in shallow waters.

Osman acted swiftly, successfully rescuing the stranded dolphins by guiding them back to deeper waters.

Unfortunately, one of the dolphins did not survive the ordeal.

Labuan Fisheries Department director Faizal Ibrahim Suhaili said the Certificate of Appreciation serves as a token of gratitude for their dedication to wildlife conservation and their role in safeguarding the future of the Hawksbill sea turtle population and the dolphins.

"Their efforts serve as a testament to the fact that every individual can contribute to the preservation of our natural world,” he said. - BERNAMA