The other day, Miguel Ángel Escobar and his family were traveling by boat off the coast of Honduras when something caught their eyes — and immediately broke their hearts.

There, along a remote stretch of coast, they spotted a massive sea turtle entangled in some tree roots near the water’s edge.

“I thought she was dead,” Escobar told The Dodo. “We felt such pity for her.”

The turtle wasn’t dead, however. She’d just given up hope.

But hope was about to arrive.

Though the turtle appeared to have been trapped there for some time, and likely had perished, Escobar decided to take a closer look anyway — just in case.

She remained motionless as he pulled the boat to shore and approached.

“When I touched her, she instantly let out a sigh and she started to move her head,” Escobar said.

And with that, Escobar sprang into action.