Original message from 7 August 2023
Two serious marine accidents occurred in the Baltic Sea at the weekend: The body of a 57-year-old sailor from Stralsund was found in the Barther Bodden on Friday. On Sunday evening, the search for a sailor who had fallen overboard off Travemünde was cancelled without success despite a large-scale rescue operation
On Friday, 4 August, at around 12.30 pm, a sailor reported a runaway sailing boat on the Barther Bodden near Nisdorf harbour, whereupon the DGzRS Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre immediately initiated search and rescue operations. A total of five boats from the sea rescue organisation, the water police and the fire brigade as well as several helicopters took part in the search.
At around 2.25 pm, the police received a tip-off from a kitesurfer that she had found a lifeless man in the reeds not far from the grounded boat, which was still under sail. Together with the fire brigade, the sailor was rescued but unfortunately only pronounced dead.
Investigations by the Stralsund police revealed that the deceased was the 57-year-old owner of the unmanned boat. At present, there are no indications of outside influence or the existence of a criminal offence, so that an accident is assumed. However, the investigation is still ongoing.
Major operation with 21 ships and two helicopters off Travemünde
On Sunday, 6 August, at around 1.45 p.m., the DGzRS received a report that a 55-year-old man had fallen overboard a sailing yacht in the Baltic Sea near the Travemünde approach. The woman (39) who had remained on board had made the emergency call. The two men from Lower Saxony were travelling from Boltenhagen to Travemünde.
In addition to the lifeboats of the DGzRS, water police, DLRG, DRW-Wasserwacht and the Lübeck fire brigade, numerous recreational skippers also took part in the search. The rescue cruiser "Felix Sand", which acted as on-scene coordinator, was thus able to call on a total of 21 vessels and two rescue helicopters. A SAR helicopter of the naval aviators was already in the air due to an exercise with the sea rescuers in Hohwacht Bay and was on site within a very short time.
The units involved systematically travelled through the search area, which had been defined and repeatedly updated by the sea rescuers. North-easterly winds of around 3 Beaufort, good visibility and a swell of around half a metre with a water temperature of 18 degrees Celsius prevailed in the area. DLRG lifeguards boarded the sailing yacht and assisted the sailor, who was in shock, in bringing the boat to Travemünde.
The search was suspended at around 5 p.m. until new information was available. The waterway police have begun investigating the cause of the accident.
