Four rehabilitated sea lions released back into the ocean in Redondo Beach

REDONDO BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- A crowd of volunteers cheered and celebrated as four sea lions were successfully released back into the ocean by the Marine Mammal Care Center.

"I feel pretty lucky. It's really awesome to see these animals happy and healthy and not at the center," said volunteer Manuel Ortega.

"Two of the animals came in because of human interaction through fishing line entanglement or hook ingestions. The other two were more typical malnourishment, and respiratory issue animals. And they're with us from anywhere from two to four months generally," said Marine Mammal Care Center CEO John Warner.

This is the first time the nonprofit has released sea lions into Redondo Beach. They collaborated with city leaders to ensure the sea lions were released into a thriving marine habitat.

"We have picked up more animals here this last year in Redondo than anywhere else," Warner said. "So it's a rich area for sea lions and marine life and the really dedicated and passionate citizenry that wants these animals to get better and be safe."

"What's nice is they follow through and let us see the progress of them. And it was great for the community to be able to see some of these sea lions who were nursed back to health," said Redondo Beach Mayor Jim Light.

The Marine Mammal Care Center currently has 40 sea lions at their facility. Last year alone, the nonprofit rescued more than 600 animals across Los Angeles County beaches.

"During our busy season, it can be multiple animals a day. I think some of our busiest times we've had five maybe six animals come in at once. But it's all for that final reward of being able to see them go back into the ocean," said Julian Leon, a marine mammal responder for the Marine Mammal Care Center.

Organizers of the nonprofit say their rescue efforts wouldn't be possible without the support from volunteers. Anyone interested in volunteering can sign up at marinemammalcare.org.