Drift River terminal workers rescue seal pup

by The Associated Press

Oil terminal workers rescued a starving female seal pup May 29 on a beach south of Drift River.

Steve Letzring and David Keim were following bear tracks when they found the little seal above the high water mark.

The men, who work for Cook Inlet Pipeline at the Drift River Oil Terminal on the west side of Cook Inlet, said they thought the pup may have washed up on the beach in recent storms.

The men called the Alaska SeaLife Center, which advised them to leave the seal on the beach and keep an eye on it for a few hours, to make sure its mother was not around. When no mother appeared, the men took the seal in and it was transported to the SeaLife Center.

Rehabilitation technician Tim Lebling of the SeaLife Center said the pup was given fluids to combat dehydration and formula. If all goes well, the pup will be weaned onto a diet of fish and once it can catch fish on its own, released back into the wild.