Royal Navy: Charitable HMS Medway sailors support rare turtles and clear rubbish during Caribbean deployment
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Personnel aboard the Portsmouth-based patrol vessel HMS Medway helped Sea Turtle Conservation Curacao while stopping off on the island. They supported conservationists with medical checks on the reptiles and cleared rubbish from nesting beaches.
Sub Lieutenant Emily Shore said: “Removing the rubbish from the beach is a small part in helping the local wildlife and people co-exist, particularly as small plastic debris can be so harmful to sea creatures. The environment is very important to the Royal Navy so we hope to continue this work with local organisations to support where we can.”
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdEight Royal Navy sailors and other volunteers from the charity carried out a netting session which sees a net released across the entrance of a bay to catch turtles as they swim to deeper waters. The turtles are placed on floats to move them to shore where they were checked over by a medical team, before being released back into the waters.
The labour-intensive work saw the ship successfully net and release 21 turtles. They also managed to find one of five turtles who previously had depth loggers attached (which track the behaviours and location of the turtles) and remove them, with the data sent back to a university in the Netherlands.
Lieutenant Anna Wheeler, the Weapons Engineer Officer on Medway, said: “It was an incredible way to start 2025, not only being deployed to the Caribbean, but also doing what we can to help the turtles. It was a huge honour to participate in the netting session with the conservationists, a wonderful group of volunteers doing such a commendable job for the environment.”
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdDuring the visit, HMS Medway gathered seven full bin bags of waste from the beach, met and hosted Her Excellency Joanna Roper CMG, UK Ambassador to the Netherlands, Royal Netherlands Navy colleagues and other dignitaries during a defence engagement visit and managed to find time for some sport. This included stand-up paddle-boarding and deep-sea fishing.
HMS Medway’s work with the turtles comes after the ship was asked to return six other turtles to their Atlantic habitat during their crossing from Plymouth to the Caribbean. The loggerhead turtles had been nurtured back to health after being washed up on UK shores and were released back into warmer waters by the sailors on Medway.
Comment Guidelines
National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.