This is the heartwarming moment fishermen rescued a dugong washed up on a beach.

Locals heard the sea creature bleating and struggling after it was pushed by strong currents on the shallow part of the beach in Ko Libong island in Trang, southern Thailand on October 18.

Ten local fishermen came to the rescue and used a loincloth to carry the animal back into the water.

Local official Abdul Raheem Boonraksa said the fishermen rushed to help after some of their neighbours reported the dugong sighting.

He said: "We hurried to the beach and used loin cloth to cradle the creature and lift it back to the deep water. We had to be quick to give it the best chance of surviving.

"The villagers have always helped the sea creatures that have been washed up on the beach."

Abdul added that the huge marine animal, estimated to weigh 200kg, may have been stranded on the beach for almost eight hours.

He said: "It was tired when we found it, but the fishermen who have been at the spot the night before did not see the creature."

The female dugong swam back into the sea while the villagers cheered after helping the stranded animal.

Dugongs are medium-sized marine mammal classified as vulnerable to extinction by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).