Salvage can begin: The "Ethel of Brixham" is to be raised this weekend!

Recovery planned for the weekend

For almost two weeks, the wrecked "Ethel von Brixham" has been a sad sight on the causeway off Cuxhaven. For a long time, it was uncertain what would happen to her. Now it is clear: the 135-year-old schooner is to be salvaged.

The WSA Elbe-Nordsee has announced: "Following clarification of the legal framework, a specialised company was commissioned yesterday to remove the damaged vessel from the federal waterway as part of a tendering process." The salvage operation is scheduled to begin as early as next weekend - the company will use several pieces of specialised equipment - including a floating crane and other support vessels - to salvage the "Ethel von Brixham" and bring it ashore "for further recovery".

According to the WSA, the salvage company impressed with a concept that was closely coordinated with the authorities. Among other things, oil collection technology is to be used in order to be able to react to a possible leakage of pollutants. Around 300 litres of diesel could already be pumped out of one of the two tanks last week. However, a second tank could not be reached due to the sloping position. The "Ethel of Brixham" has two tanks with a capacity of 1,000 litres each; nobody knows how much diesel and other pollutants are still on board.

Any wreckage that could detach from the severely damaged hull during the salvage operation will be collected by the other ships on standby.

The WSA Elbe-Nordsee itself will accompany the salvage work with a ship owned by the authorities. Passing shipping will be warned during the salvage operation to ensure a safe procedure. The costs incurred by the salvage operation will be invoiced to the owner once the operation has been completed.

Dramatic accident on 31 January

It was to be a transfer voyage from Brunsbüttel to Den Helder. But on Saturday, 31 January 2026, at around 12.15 p.m., the "Ethel von Brixham" ran onto the causeway off Cuxhaven at buoy 29 - around 2.6 kilometres off the Kugelbake. The rescue cruiser from the DGzRS station in Cuxhaven set out immediately, but the attempt to tow it free with the flattening daughter boat failed. The 30 metre long wooden schooner was stuck too firmly on the rocks.

As no water ingress was initially detected, the crew and sea rescuers wanted to wait for the next high tide around midnight. The situation worsened dramatically as the water rose. At around 9 p.m., the crew reported a water ingress. The multi-purpose vessel "Neuwerk" from the Waterways and Shipping Office offered assistance. When a work boat picked up a crew member and a dog, the extent of the accident became clear: the keel of the schooner, built in 1890, was already bulging. It was in danger of breaking apart. When a bilge pump also failed, the entire crew was evacuated and brought safely to Cuxhaven. At an air temperature of minus three degrees, a water temperature of two degrees and five Beaufort winds from the south-east, staying on board would have been life-threatening.

Owner let deadline pass

In the following days, the WSA set a deadline for the British owner to submit a salvage plan. However, this deadline passed without action. The owner did not submit a concept and made no salvage attempts.

Meanwhile, a sad picture presented itself: a ship over 130 years old was lying on its side, scarred by the tide and ice. Icicles hung from the sails and rigging. There was a large hole in the hull on the port side.

Kai Ewers, press spokesman for WSA Elbe-Nordsee, explained at the time that the stricken vessel was still in a stable position and was "high and dry, so to speak", which was due to the easterly wind. Should this change, the ship could drift into the navigation channel at higher water levels and become a danger to shipping.

A ship with an eventful history

The "Ethel of Brixham" looks back on 135 eventful years. Launched in the south of England in 1890, she was originally designed for tough fishing under sail between the North Sea and the Bay of Biscay. In the 1920s, she came to Norway, where she was used as a fishing and cargo ship. In 1981, she was transferred to Germany and re-rigged as a staysail schooner, and in 2011 she was given her characteristic gaff schooner rig again.

From 1996 to 2025, the "Ethel" belonged to Gerhard Bialek from Kiel, who gave up his career in the automotive industry for her. With her striking red hull, she was moored at the Blücherbrücke for decades and became an integral part of Kiel's fleet of traditional ships. In 2023, she played the lead role in the Guy Ritchie war film "The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare". However, increasing legal requirements forced Bialek to sell in 2024. "What has happened now is a shock to me," he said of the recent events.

In August 2025, the 69-year-old gave the wooden schooner to a new owner for a symbolic euro, "who I had a lot of confidence in," says Bialek. His biggest worry - that the "Ethel" would have to be scrapped - initially seemed to have disappeared. But by the end of 2025, the "Ethel" had found another new owner, a young British man. He wanted to bring her back to her old home. On the planned leg of the transfer voyage from Cuxhaven to Den Helder, the new and now possibly final accident occurred.

Uncertain future

What will happen to the historic schooner after it is salvaged remains to be seen. The press release speaks of "further utilisation" - a term that leaves little hope for a restoration. The costs arising from the salvage will be charged to the owner, which is likely to further complicate the young Briton's already ambitious restoration project.

After 135 years at sea, the story of the "Ethel of Brixham" could come to an end - not in her home port of Brixham, but in a scrapping yard on the German North Sea coast.

"Leaving the safe harbour of Cuxhaven at this time of year to continue this actually simple crossing to Lowestoft was actually idiotic," the long-time owner of the once proud schooner Bialek makes clear and adds: "And so, unfortunately, it has now come to pass that the "Ethel von Brixham" has probably found her grave off Cuxhaven at the Kugelbake."