Good Samaritans rescue pelicans on Virginia Beach bridge during Hurricane Dorian

A video that shows a group of people rescuing a pelican in distress during Hurricane Dorian is making people smile.

Posted 1:51 p.m. Sep 9, 2019 — Updated 3:34 p.m. Sep 9, 2019

VIRGINIA BEACH, VA. — A video that shows a group of people rescuing pelicans during Hurricane Dorian is warming hearts.

According to NBC Charlotte, good Samaritans spotted pelicans in distress on Lesner Bridge during Hurricane Dorian on Friday. The rescue was recorded and posted to Facebook by Paul Holley, who pulled over on the bridge.

A Virginia Beach police officer stopped their cruiser to keep everyone safe while they were trying to help the bird.

In the video, a pelican is seen trying to fly away from the bridge, but it gets caught up and overtaken by the strong winds. The bird struggled to fly and quickly landed on the ground behind one of the stopped cars.

Rescuers scooped up the first bird, who was huddled on the sidewalk, along with four more who were wind-battered and disoriented, struggling to take flight in the middle of the road as cars whizzed past.

Another video, posted by Dacia Thorson, shows three pelicans nestled on blankets in the backseat of her Jeep en route to a wildlife center.

One of the pelicans was hit by a car, and the others were struggling to fly in the strong winds, according to Thorson.

View all of WRAL's Hurricane Dorian coverage.

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