A sailing yacht that sank in Lake Zug in the Swiss canton of Schwyz in June 2024 was raised from a depth of around 80 metres. The yacht had wrecked and sunk during a regatta. A 56-year-old crew member was initially missing and later recovered dead. It is not yet known how the accident occurred.
The 9.50 metre long ship is a Lacustre. The classic racing yachts, which are only 1.81 metres wide, are the most widespread standard class in Switzerland. We recently reported in detail on the complex salvage of a special class, which also ran aground while racing.
Although around 50 metres less had to be overcome, the rescue of the Lacustre also required the deployment of numerous specialists over several hours. Beforehand, the salvage of the sailing ship had to be meticulously prepared and planned.
Salvage in several stages: Lacustre recovered from a depth of 80 metres
As a first step, the divers from the Zurich cantonal police managed to attach the winch recovery structure to the sailing ship last Friday. This work proved to be extremely challenging due to the situation on the lake bed, but was successful.
Yesterday, the cable of the recovery winch was then attached again with a dive to a depth of 80 metres. This was located on the floating platform of a private construction company. The yacht was then raised slowly and carefully.
Once on the surface, the ship was secured by divers from the Schwyz cantonal police, lifted up using a device, pumped out and then towed to Zug harbour by boat. There, the sailing ship was lifted onto a boat trailer and transported away. The cause of the sinking of the sailing ship is the subject of an ongoing investigation by the public prosecutor's office of the Canton of Zug.
