Rogue seal ‘scurrying’ around Maine town wouldn’t let police stop it from exploring
Cape Elizabeth police had their work cut out for them when a seal kept returning to their town after it was rescued and released three times in one day.
Police say they received an “unusual call” from a public works employee at 1:30 a.m. on Jan. 23, advising officers that a seal appeared to be “scurrying through the neighborhood,” according to a Facebook post.
An officer came to check out the situation and found a seal in the road of the Cape Elizabeth neighborhood, “enjoying the hush of a snowy winter night.” The officer captured the seal and brought it to Fort Williams Park to release it back into the ocean.
“We did not know it at the time,” said the post, “but this seal was committed to his goal of exploring Cape Elizabeth.”
Police received another call at 7 a.m. claiming the same seal was making its way down another road, “possibly following that delicious scent” of a local doughnut shop baking its morning batch.
A second officer responded to the call, and with the help of a local resident, was able to capture the seal for a second time, again bringing the seal to Fort Williams Park and releasing it.
“But of course this isn’t the end of the story …” the post continued.
Just an hour or so later, the seal was once again “exploring” the park. An officer and several residents captured the seal for a third time and brought it back to the ocean.
“This time, the seal swam off in a search of bigger and better adventures,” police said.
Police shared an update later saying Marine Mammals of Maine had been called and had rescued the seal. It is now being assessed at a rehabilitation facility after a day as a Cape Elizabeth tourist.
