Jan 2, 2010 8:34 am US/Pacific
Injured SF Pier 39 Sea Lion Needs Rescue
Reporting
Click to enlarge- The injured sea lion at Pier 39 in San Francisco.
CBS
Images of the struggling sea lion floating on a dock were first broadcast on CBS 5 Eyewitness News at 11 p.m. Friday. The mammal appeared to have a fishing line tightly rapped around its neck and snout and looked as if it was having difficulty breathing.
Nearby tourists watched helplessly and called on The Marine Mammal Center to respond sooner.
"The Marine Mammal Center calls itself a 24-hour rescue," Myron from Hawaii said. "If it says 24-hour rescue service I think they should be out here to assess it right now."
The nonprofit organization defended its handling of the situation saying rescues at night with no direct foot access are too risky.
"The level of difficulty is extremely high in a situation like this," said Erin Brodie, Stranding Coordinator of The Marine Mammal Center.
The plight of the sea lion drew an unusually large response from CBS 5 viewers. E-mails and phone calls poured in to the station during and after the airing of the story. Most of the viewers expressed frustration with the lack of response.
The injured sea lion was discovered in the same tourist hot spot where over one thousand sea lions used to call home. They recently vanished from the Pier 39 docks after a 20-year stay.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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