Deer Creek firefighters on a mission to save motherless baby snapping turtles

DEER CREEK, Okla. — Right now, there is an unusual rescue mission taking place at a local fire department.

Firefighters at Deer Creek are doing all they can to save baby snapping turtles.
They found the turtles on May 16.

Assistant Fire Chief Michael Montgomery and his chief were driving on Pennsylvania Ave. when something caught their eye.

"I saw a very large common snapping turtle that had been hit. She was flipped over on her backside," Montgomery said.

They pulled over in hopes of saving her.

"We walked over and saw the eggs were laying on the ground around her. I picked her up from the street and put her in the grass," Montgomery said.

Sadly, she died from her injuries soon after that.

That is when Montgomery's fatherly instincts took over.

"We thought, 'Well, maybe there's a chance that we might be able to save these eggs.' So we're giving it a shot."

He took these 13 eggs and put them in a homemade incubator. They now sit at the fire station, where crew members keep watch.

"Chief's on board. I don't think he was quite as giddy as I was at the whole idea," Montgomery laughed. "For the last 24 hours I've almost been a little bit nervous hoping that my little incubator works."

If it does, they could be meeting their new friends in a few months.

"If we hatch (even) one of them, I think it'll be a success."

When we asked Montgomery if he would keep one as a pet, he said, "I don't know that I'll keep one as a pet. I don't know. This venture's not over yet, I guess."

He says if they hatch, he plans to release the turtles into the wild.

He also wants to warn you that with all the flooding, you might see more reptiles in the roads.

If you see one, you can call your local animal control or fire department.