A new intensive care unit in Islamorada will give injured dolphins and whales in the Florida Keys a fighting chance of survival without needing to be transported to SeaWorld or the Clearwater Aquarium.
Recently, Islamorada council members unanimously approved Dolphins Plus Marine Mammal Responder’s request to redevelop the former Latitude 25 building at MM 82 into a critical care facility for dolphins needing immediate treatment. Known as the Protect Center, the hospital will house a 40-foot-diameter, 56,000-gallon pool to facilitate long-term rehabilitation of marine mammals, specifically dolphins and whales.
DPMMR is the only federally-licensed response unit for injured dolphins and whales. DPMMR covers the seas between Ocean Reef and the Dry Tortugas, and all the way to the Everglades National Park. The team has responded to more than 700 marine mammals.
For years, the team had no choice but to transport the sick marine mammals out of the Keys for care or humanely euthanize in cases when no rehab facilities had space. A new hospital in Islamorada will provide the immediate care necessary to keep the marine mammals alive.
Art Cooper, DPMMR founder and primary responder, said the hospital’s goal is rehabbing and releasing healthy marine mammals into the ocean. DPMMR works with the National Marine Fisheries Services in determining whether the marine mammal needs extended care at a facility outside the Keys.
“The goal is to get injured animals well as quickly as possible,” Cooper said. “The idea isn’t to keep them in the pool for too long. The longer we have them in the pool the more time the pool is shut down for critical care.”
Cooper added the facility won’t house injured manatees, as the rescue and recovery efforts are led by Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission. Florida Keys Aquarium Encounters, located in Marathon, serves as a manatee rehabilitation facility.
Per a list of conditions outlined in the approved resolution, about 10,500 square feet of space will be redeveloped into a critical care facility for marine mammals. In addition to the above-ground pool, the hospital will contain a salt water well and sleeping quarters for 24-hour surveillance and treatment of sick marine mammals. Cooper said the marine mammal rehabilitation will not be on public display. The Protect Center has a retail space and an area dedicated to educational programming.
Per village procedure, notices were mailed to adjacent property owners informing them of the project. The village received no letter of objections from nearby neighbors.
Councilman Henry Rosenthal, who later voted yes on the proposal, said he wasn’t sure the facility would fit on the property.
“I’m surprised you’re looking at that property for your objectives, truthfully,” he said.
Responding to Rosenthal, Cooper acknowledged it’s the only property they have at their disposal to conduct critical rehabilitative work.
“The most difficult thing for us to do is respond to the animal, pick it up and stabilize and call another facility and hear there’s no pool space available,” he said.
Before voting in favor of the proposal, Vice Mayor Sharon Mahoney said the facility is much needed to save the lives of animals.
“I don’t think people realize when you’re in a triage situation you have to do what you have to do to save the animal,” said Mahoney, who’s worked to stabilize the vulnerable cat population through spaying and neutering.
