This is the astonishing moment two tourists free a beached turtle by melting the plastic wrapped around its flipper with a lighter.

The clip, filmed in Malta, captures the pair as they spot the creature stuck on rocks by the sea.

The turtle is perched with a plastic water bottle underneath it as waves crash behind.

This is the astonishing moment a turtle is found with one of its front flippers wrapped in a mound of shredded plastic ribbons and a bottle

The turtle is perched with a plastic water bottle underneath it as waves crash behind on a beach in Malta

The two tourists lift the turtle from the rocks before attempting to remove the multiple layers of plastic. After multiple attempts at removing the bottle one of the rescuers pulls a lighter from his jeans pocket and burns the plastic

After watching the stuck animal for a moment, the pair decide it needs help, and lift the turtle from the rocks.

It begins to panic and attempt to move away – kicking out as the pair realise one of its front flippers is wrapped in multiple layers of plastic.

One of the two briefly attempts to pull the plastic away before realising the extent of the problem, and moving the creature to the beach.

He then begins to unravel a large plastic bottle from the mound of rubbish – twisting the shredded plastic around to release it.

The pair spend a few moments longer attempting to untie the ribbons of material from the turtle before resorting to more desperate measures.

After melting the plastic from the turtle’s flipper the tourists release the creature back into the waters

The turtle marches towards the nearby sea and then disappears into the distance – with a bit of help from his rescuers

One of the rescuers pulls a lighter from his jeans pocket, very carefully holding the flame against a piece of plastic held away from the turtle.

The sea turtle closes its eyes as the tourist continues holding the small flame against the ribbon – struggling for a moment to keep it lit.

But before long the plastic melts, and the pair are able to release the turtle from the mound of rubbish.

The creature takes a moment to recover from its ordeal before marching towards the nearby sea and disappearing into the distance – with a bit of help from his rescuers.

The video then pans the beach to show the amount of plastic hidden in and around the rocks.

Shocking statistics revealed by Nature Trust president Vincent Attard has confirmed that 20 turtles have already been killed in Malta’s waters this year due to plastic pollution.

This supersedes last year’s statistics when a total of 15 turtles in the country died from ingesting plastic.