The sailor was extremely lucky. His boat – a 15er dinghy cruiser, according to the DGzRS – was drifting unmanned on the Flensburg Fjord when the crew of a motor yacht pulled the castaway out of the water. The sea rescue team from the German Maritime Search and Rescue Service (DGzRS) subsequently towed the abandoned boat into the harbour.
Mayday and emergency beacon
At around 2.30 pm, the DGzRS’s Bremen Rescue Radio coastal distress radio station received a Mayday call at the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) Bremen. Via international VHF radio emergency and call channel 16, sailors reported an unmanned sailing boat near the Kalkgrund lighthouse.
The incident commanders then alerted the sea rescue boats “Werner Kuntze” from the Langballigau station and “Ursula Dettmann” from the Gelting station. At around the same time, the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre received an emergency signal from a personal locator beacon (PLB) that had been triggered in the same area of the lake. Our article shows which technical systems can assist in the search for a person who has fallen overboard. Field trial of a MOB tracking system.
Shipwreck survivor is doing well
A few minutes after setting sail, the crew of a motor yacht contacted Bremen Rescue Radio. They had rescued a man from the water. According to the DGzRS, the man was unharmed but suffering from mild hypothermia.
The Ursula Dettmann first approached the motor yacht. It then transpired that the man who had been rescued had activated his PLB. He did not require medical assistance. The sea rescue team then set course for the unmanned dinghy cruiser and came alongside it. Two rescue crew members transferred to the 6.5-metre-long boat and secured a line connection.
The Ursula Dettmann then towed the stricken vessel into the harbour. The motor yacht had also moored there. Its crew brought the shipwrecked man safely ashore.
At the time of the operation, the wind was blowing from the north-west at four to five on the Beaufort scale. The wave height was around one metre, and the water temperature was around 19 degrees Celsius.
To find out how high the risk of hypothermia is at this water temperature and how best to help someone suffering from hypothermia, please read our Speciality items.
Further articles on this topic
- Man overboard: You need to know how to carry out these manoeuvres! – Fundamentals and control procedures for the MOB manoeuvre
- Seamanship: MOB manoeuvre using only on-board equipment – a guide – Rescue and return on board
- Safety: Man overboard – these 20 systems can save lives – A comparison of rescue loops, rescue collars and throw lines
Book recommendations
Port Manoeuvres: Step by Step explains various man-overboard manoeuvres using photomontages and clear step-by-step instructions. The book shows how a crew should react after someone has fallen overboard and how to operate the boat safely to carry out the rescue. It also covers towing manoeuvres and how to respond in different situations.
First aid on board – medical charts focuses on medical care following an accident on board. The charts cover the examination of injured and sick persons, the treatment of wounds and fractures, and life-threatening emergencies. The manoeuvres section contains specific first-aid guidelines and advice on the on-board first-aid kit for cases of hypothermia.
Lars Bolle
Chief Editor Digital
