At around 5.10 p.m., the Maritime Rescue Co-Ordination Centre (MRCC) Bremen picked up a radio message that was difficult to understand. It soon became clear that a Norwegian single-handed sailor had become stranded on a sandbank in the sea between the islands of Juist and Norderney. Its position could only be determined incompletely at first.
The rescue cruiser "Eugen" from the DGzRS station on Norderney happened to be in the vicinity of the distressed sailing yacht at the time. It quickly found her around 1.3 nautical miles off the western tip of Norderney. Due to the low water, however, the sea rescuers were unable to reach the sailing yacht directly. They tried to establish a connection with the line throwing device. But the skipper initially refused any help. In the meantime, a second rescue boat, the "Otto Diersch" from Norddeich, had arrived.
After the low tide, the surf increased more and more in the evening as the water rose again. It threw the sailing yacht onto the concrete-hard sandbank several times. This caused the keel to break and shortly afterwards the mast as well.
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Difficulties reaching the sailing yacht
Despite their shallow draughts, the DGzRS vessels and a patrol boat from the water police, which had also arrived at the scene in the meantime, were still unable to reach the sailing yacht directly. The 46-year-old sailor finally abandoned his boat and jumped into the North Sea without further ado. He was immediately caught by the current and pulled away from the badly damaged yacht. However, the crew of the "Otto Diersch" managed to catch the shipwrecked man and pull him on board through the salvage gate.
The sea rescuers immediately set course for the mainland and provided first aid to the rescued man, who showed signs of hypothermia. In Norddeich, the casualty was handed over to the rescue service on land. An ambulance took him to hospital for a check-up.
Waves up to three metres high
At the time of the operation, there were force 4 north-westerly winds and very rough seas with waves up to three metres high due to the stormy weather of the previous days.
The wreck of the Norwegian had already been secured by customs on Saturday morning. Once again, the "Otto Diersch" offered help by taking the wrecked boat on the hook and towing it to Norddeich, where it is now lying high and dry.
