The locals really do know how to treat our wildlife. We protect our turtles, call out bullshit fishing…and have a genuine appreciation for many different species that show the Emerald Coast with us.

And that brings us to today’s “feel good story” of the week…

Two videos were posted to Facebook earlier this week by Cory Hassett showing 2 men helping a distressed pelican who had a hook in its side and fishing line wrapped around its wing and mouth.

Hassett, along with the men in the video, all work at The Original Waterfront Crab Shack on highway 98 in Fort Walton Beach. In his post on Facebook, Hassett wrote:

Never a dull day at The Shack. Jim and Matt saw this poor bird in distress outside our marina gate. Had a fishing hook in its side and fishing line wrapped around his wing and mouth. They had to separate the protective one to get to the other and get the fishing line off. Walked over just in time to record Jim and matt in action. Language warning lol

Take a look at the videos below:

Good job Jim and Matt! And thanks to Cory for capturing all of this for us to witness!