New details on freeing of whale stranded off Germany coast
10.05.2026, DPA
Photo: Christoph Reichwein/dpa
New information emerged on Sunday about the operation to tow a humpback whale from Germany’s Baltic coast a week ago.
Hamburg law firm Cronemeyer Haisch said in a statement it was representing the company behind the barge used in the operation, the Robin Hood.
A private initiative had organized the rescue of the whale on the Baltic coast and its transport in a water-filled cargo vessel towards the North Sea.
The release was initiated on Friday, May 1, the law firm said, "on the instructions of the private initiative."
The statement said that the whale had bumped against the barge during transport, and had "sustained scratches".
The barrier net had been removed, leaving the barge open to the sea, but a first attempt to release the whale was unsuccessful and was abandoned at nightfall.
A second attempt took place the following day, which succeeded.
"It took another breath, then swam past the ships half-submerged and then dived away," the statement said, adding that the shipping company and the crew had done everything possible to ensure that the whale was released unharmed and as quickly as possible.
The release took place around 70 kilometres off Skagen in northern Denmark. Animal welfare organizations had all assessed the mammal’s long-term chances of survival as very low.
The German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania recently expressed dissatisfaction at the lack of information regarding the whale’s location and condition.
It was reportedly agreed with the initiative that a GPS transmitter would be attached to the whale and that tracking data would be transmitted. This has apparently not yet been complied with.
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