LAGUNA BEACH (KRON) — 14 sea lions who were poisoned by chlorine contamination at a rehab center have been returned to the sea off of the Orange County coast.
Mary Beth Steen of the Pacific Marine Mammal Center says that the sea lions were sent off with a round of applause from cheering spectators as they took off into the waves Tuesday morning.
Police think that somebody put chlorine in the water filtration system at the Laguna Beach center on April 27. They are still searching for suspects, and are offering a $2,500 reward in this case.
The Pacific Marine Mammal Center works to rescue, rehabilitate and release sea lions.
When the chlorine got into one of the facility’s saltwater pools, 14 sea lions from that area had swollen eyes.
Steen says that the remaining three sea lions still need more care before they can go back out to sea.