Rescuers move the stranded dolphin onto a fishing boat. [Photo/WeChat account: tzfb001]

A dolphin found stranded on a mudflat in Wenling, a county-level city of Taizhou, was successfully rescued and returned to the deep sea, thanks to the collaborative efforts of multiple departments involved in the operation.

At 2:59 pm, Wenling fire and rescue authorities received an urgent call reporting a stranded dolphin in the coastal town of Binhai. The call, made by a local resident, prompted an immediate response, leading to the dispatch of three fire trucks and 16 rescue personnel to the scene.

Upon arrival, the rescue team discovered the dolphin bogged in the muddy flats, displaying rapid breathing and extremely dry skin. Working alongside local police officers and villagers, the rescuers used foam pads to carefully move the dolphin to an area with ample water supply, periodically splashing water on the sea creature to keep it moist.

Approximately half an hour later, personnel from the local fisheries management office arrived at the scene. Following the guidance of the experts, the rescue team combined foam pads and a multi-functional stretcher to secure the dolphin and collectively dragged it over 100 meters across the mudflat to be transported onto a fishing boat. The boat then sailed to a remote sea area, where the dolphin was released back into the wild.

"Seeing the dolphin wave its tail and swim back to the deep sea, I felt very relieved," said Sun Yongwei, a police officer who participated in the rescue, despite being covered in mud from head to toe, unable to conceal his excitement.

Experts inferred that the dolphin's stranding was likely caused by a disruption in its biological navigation system, coinciding with the ebbing tide, which ultimately led to its stranding on the mudflat.