After admiring orcas near the coast of Aberdeen, Scotland, couple Lorraine Calloch and Mike Roberts headed home, but the navigator took the wrong route. Driving past the shallow coastline, the woman noticed a dolphin. Lorraine and Mike went straight to the dolphin. Instead of simply turning the car around and continuing on their way, Culloch and Roberts did the opposite: They walked out to see if the animal was still alive.

The animal was immediately covered with wet towels. The couple quickly called the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) and the SSPCA to help the poor dolphin.

Despite all the responsiveness of the team, however, the rescuers had to wait another half day for the tide to return the female dolphin to the sea. The rescuers were with the animal for 10 hours.  In the pre-dawn hours, the tide came in, and the animal was able to return to the deep waters. The dolphin quickly regained her strength and swam away from her rescuers.

“When she regained her strength, she swam away out of the bay,” said Culloch. “She was swimming strong. That was a good sign.”- the couple said.

Of course, Lorraine didn’t expect to stay on the coast that long, but she was still glad that the navigator’s error had saved the dolphin’s life.

“It’s a great feeling to be part of giving this dolphin a second chance,” she said. “Everyone involved in these rescues are amazing people.”,- the couple added.