"Everyone out of the danger zone!" In response to the urgent call, the ten or so crew members of the crane ship - all male - start to move. Only when they have left the danger zone does the crane begin to hoist with a loud roar. Slowly, the sailing yacht hanging from the hot-drop lifts itself from the massive pillars that supported the jetty before the storm surge.
The scene takes place on board the "Noorcat", it is day six after the devastating storm surge in the Baltic Sea. The salvage ship is moored in the southern part of the Olympic harbour in Kiel-Schilksee. A diver had already dived the area around the "Farr-Laessig" to get an overview of how it could be salvaged. Since the flood waters receded, she has been lying on the jetty - at least on what is left of it.
The ship that is so helplessly stranded there is a Farr 40, which is 12.41 metres long, just over four metres wide and displaces almost five tonnes. She was launched in 1999 and the mast is 20 metres high. It was built by Carroll Marine, can sleep ten people and has an immense draught of 2.6 metres.
Rapid assistance for on-site recovery
A little further on, on land, the office container of yacht insurer Pantaenius is another scene of the action. Dirk Hilcken has been present here since the storm surge in Schilksee. He was one of the first experts on site and has been clarifying the concerns of the owners insured with his employer ever since. "We try to minimise the damage as much as possible and secure the assets that are salvaged. Many owners like coming to us because they know that we help wherever we can. And, above all, that we have an open ear for them," says Hilcken.
The damage expert then usually has to ask his customers for patience. For example, because the track for the floating crane has to be cleared first. Or because other ships have to be secured in the meantime, which would otherwise be even more severely damaged or even sink. For example, in the case of large leaks above the waterline caused by torn-out cleats or damaged hatches. Or deep gelcoat damage, which is common after numerous collisions with boats that have been torn loose.
A meeting is held in Hilcken's office container before the actual salvage work on the ship itself begins. In addition to sandwiches and coffee, there is a detailed picture of the situation: "It's going to be difficult again this afternoon. The forecast is for a force five wind from the east. We can expect a lot of swell in the harbour," says Hilcken's colleague Ole Pietschke.
Then it's out into the cool, damp air of Schilksee. A walk along the promenade of the Olympic harbour reveals the full extent of the fatal storm surge. If work had to pause due to the weather, it would be fatal in view of this sight.
Recovery professionals are at work
But for now, the Marine Claims Service (MCS) team is taking care of the "Farr-Laessig". The salvage commissioner responsible in Schilksee is the Managing Director of MCS, Kai Haasler. The trained boat builder and engineer wears a neon yellow signalling jacket with reflective stripes, from which a radio hangs, his dark blue cap pulled low over his face.
MCS is an independent surveyor's office and average commissioner's office. In total, the salvage experts have over 290 orders along the German coast as a result of the Baltic Sea storm surge. Of these, around 150 yachts have sunk completely, while the rest are only partially sunk, lying ashore or have been impaled. MCS has a total of ten employees in the harbours who are working on the clean-up operations.
On site in Schilksee, the salvage specialists led by Kai Haasler - his expertise was in demand even in the USA after the devastating hurricane "Irma" - are working with the "Noorcat" to salvage the damaged ships. The chartered Multicat is 23.5 metres long, nine metres wide and displaces an impressive 153 tonnes. MCS also has similar vehicles in operation in Damp and Maasholm.
The German Navy helps with the rescue
In Schilksee, the salvage professionals now have the support of divers from the navy. In their black diving suits, surrounded by colleagues in olive green camouflage, the team stands out in a civilian harbour like Schilksee.
The idea to offer this help came from diving master Sören Uhlstein. "We are trying to help here as part of an exercise," says Uhlstein. Specifically, this help consists of searching for and marking the individual danger spots.
"We first travelled along the pier with our sonar device to see what it looked like underwater. Above all, to see if there were any larger objects lying there that could hinder the salvage operation," says the dive master.
On the "Farr-Laessig", meanwhile, they discuss whether the salvage can be facilitated by the existing hot strop. After having the "Noorcat" moved alongside the dolphins, Kai Haasler enters the Farr 40. After a thorough inspection below deck, the expert comes to the conclusion that it will work.
Haasler has also received support from the Kiel boat builder Stefan Esser. He now moves carefully over the ship and, together with Haasler, examines what is left of the "Farr-Laessig".
The rescue is a balancing act
Then things get exciting. When the men want to make the hot strop ready to lift the boat, the shackles don't fit - they are too big. Only when replacements in the right sizes have been found does Kai Haasler attach the hot strop, which has been extended with a lashing strap, to the crane's hook.
Just how much importance is attached to not causing any further damage during recovery becomes clear when the professionals carefully secure the hot strop with lashing straps so that it can be released from the companionway.
Then the two men disembark, and shortly afterwards the crane operator's piercing warning call can be heard: "Everyone out of the danger zone!"
As the crane begins to hoist, the foredeck of the "Farr-Laessig" slowly rises first, while the stern remains stuck. No pumps are required for this. As the ship is lying on the jetty, it does not have to be emptied before the crane can lift it completely. Aids such as lifting bags are also not used in this case.
With a jerk, the stern finally comes free and the boat is carefully manoeuvred onto the crane ship. Teamwork is required here, and the crane and line operators must coordinate well with each other. This requires clear communication, as the ship in the crane must not move or even turn uncontrollably under any circumstances.
Many helpers are involved in the rescue
The tension of everyone involved is in the air. When the Farr 40 is finally suspended from the hook with its keel on the crane ship, the "Noorcat" is slowly steered through the harbour basin. This is already a difficult task due to its size, and now the freshening easterly wind and increasing swell in the harbour add to the challenge.
Philipp Mühlenhardt, Managing Director of Sporthafen Kiel GmbH, is already waiting at the crane site where the salvaged ships are lifted ashore. The family man had broken off his holiday due to the events and has since been working with his harbour masters to clean up the damage caused by the storm surge in his harbours - especially in Schilksee.
Together with one of the four harbour masters at the Olympic Port of Kiel-Schilksee, Mühlenhardt aligns the winter storage trestle of the "Farr-Laessig" so that the yacht can be lowered onto it by crane.
The hustle and bustle is interspersed with instructions from the crane ship: "A little further away from the edge! And a little straighter, please."
Ole Pietschke continues to pass on the commands coming from his radio. One of the harbour masters spontaneously runs off to fetch the forklift truck.
Meanwhile, the salvage vessel approaches the crane site with its cargo. Once the "Noorcat" has reached it and the winter storage trestle is correctly aligned, the lines are handed over and the final, no less difficult part of the salvage operation begins - the precise positioning in the winter storage trestle.
"Everyone away again!", the crane operator instructs everyone not directly involved in the manoeuvre. Only now is the "Farr-Laessig" slowly lifted ashore.
Highly focussed, the crane operator steers this final act of salvage, and finally, with the help of his colleagues, he manages to move the Farr 40 safely onto the winter storage trestle on land. Everyone involved is relieved. Despite all the tension, it was a smooth recovery.
As feared, things become more difficult in the afternoon. The strength of the wind, its direction and increasing swell make the clean-up work more difficult. Nevertheless, professionals and helpers do everything they can to salvage as many of the damaged boats as possible.
More about the Baltic Sea storm surge:
- Golden times for bargain hunters?
- Huge damage to the infrastructure
- Over 200 total losses - "Schilksee resembles a battlefield"
- Will the insurance companies pay for the damage?
- On board - Experiences during the night of terror
- All yachts must be salvaged by 31 October
- Dramatic depiction of the night of horror
- This wind pressure is generated on yachts during storms
- Balance of damage in the harbours
- Only minor problems for the charter season
