A combo image shows the giant turtle crawling back to sea.

Gulf Today Report

Indonesian villagers have rescued a huge 420-pound leatherback turtle and dragged it into the sea after they found it stuck in a swamp on the beach.

The incident occurred a few days ago, when villagers, during a birthday celebration on the beach, discovered the stranded turtle on Uping Beach in North Sulawesi.

A videograb shows a man splashing water on the turtle to keep him alive.

At first villagers suspected it was a crocodile as it was huge in size.

The giant turtle was trying to get back into the water, the villagers contacted local wildlife officers, suspected the giant tortoise had been washed ashore by the current.

The animal slowly crawls to the sea with the help of residents. 

Leatherback turtles are rare and protected animals. In Indonesia, these turtles have not been hunted and captured since 1987. Leatherback turtles are categorised as the 4th largest reptile in the world.

In the video clips of the incident, the villagers are striving to rescue and help giant sea turtle to crawl back into sea.