VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — The Marine Science Center in Ponce Inlet is rehabbing more turtles than ever before, breaking its record.

Just over halfway through the year, it has already broken its record last set in 2010 during a bad cold snap. It is a record they never wanted to break.

In 2010, the then-record was 171. But as of August of 2021, the new record is 180.

No one knows sea turtles like Allie Bernstein. She manages the sea turtle hospital at the Marine Science Center in Ponce Inlet, where she has worked for the last 11 years.  

“Every day is different and no two days are the same, you never know what is going to come through the door, you never know what your patients are going to be up to,” said Bernstein.

In August, she spent time taking care of a young green sea turtle named Xelhua, who was found stranded in New Smyrna Beach.  Xelhua was its 180th sea turtle patient this year. While Bernstein always keeps the door open for any turtle in need, this year— by July, they had already broken the record last set in 2010. This surge puts a strain on their tanks and their resources.  

“You know we are watching is this our new normal? Are we going to continue to see this high of stranding numbers or was this just an anomaly year? We will have to wait and see,” said Bernstein.

At the time, Bernstein had her hands full caring for 14 sea turtles. It is a 24/7 job,  but it is what she has always dreamed of doing since she was a teen. 

“I would sit and watch the turtles and essentially be my babysitter, keep me occupied and I would just sit out on the turtle terrace watching the turtles,” said Bernstein

Now, she watches more turtles than she could have imagined. She is regulary brought washbacks and hatchlings to monitor, which do not even going towards the center’s official count of how many it is caring for. 

“This would be the time of year that we do start to get a little bit of an influx of little hatchlings,“ said Bernstein.

Soon, Xelhua is healthy enough that she is ready to head back to the Ocean. Bernstein loaded the turtle in the back of the car, as it is just a quick trip  down the road to freedom 

“We are always excited to get them back home where they belong and be able to have successfully rehabilitated another turtle,” said Bernstein.

This work is supported by a $10,000 emergency grant the Marine Science Center just received, ensuring more turtles like Xelhua have their second chance at getting back into the sea. 

For Bernstein, this is just the latest of hundreds of turtles that she’s helped send back into the big blue, but each send-off is a special one.