Review/Outlook on WHALE RESCUE OPERATIONS
The Timmy/Hope rescue operation required the short-term planning and coordination of an extraordinary technical and logistical undertaking. The objective was to salvage a live large whale under difficult spatial and maritime conditions, transport it over a multi-day journey at sea, and release it in suitable waters.
THE HUMPBACK WHALE
Timmy/Hope was a female humpback whale who was rescued from a fishing net as early as February 2025 off Międzyzdroje on the Polish Baltic coast. The volunteer water rescue service WOPR, the Polish SAR service, the fire brigade, and WWF Poland were involved in the operation. On 3 March 2026, the humpback whale was spotted in the port of Wismar, again with fishing gear caught on its body. In the following weeks, the animal moved between the coastal waters of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Schleswig-Holstein, repeatedly ending up in shallow waters and stranding situations. On 23 March 2026, it became stuck on a sandbank off Timmendorfer Strand (Niendorf); at the end of March, further groundings followed in the Bay of Wismar and finally off the island of Poel.
THE RESCUE OPERATION
A private initiative developed and organised the rescue measures for the humpback whale in need, with the responsible state ministry publicly accepting an initial rescue concept on 15 April 2026. After this concept was not implemented, the planning was further developed and a second rescue concept was approved on 22 April 2026, which provided for the salvage and subsequent transport of the whale in a transport barge. The preparation and implementation of the measures took place with the knowledge and tolerance of the state ministry.
The rescue initiative brought together female veterinarians from Germany and abroad (Dr Jenna Wallace, Janine Bahr-van Gemmert, Anne Herrschaft, Dr Kirsten Tönnies), American whale experts, lawyers (focusing on Constanze von der Meden), animal rights activists (specifically Tierrettung Greifswald) as well as voluntary private and commercial helpers.
Mobilisation, demonstrations and the extraordinary public interest increased the pressure on politicians and authorities to allow the rescue attempt. In the background, reference was made to potential criminal consequences of continued inaction.
For the operational implementation, the German Life Saving Society (DLRG) as well as specialised service providers from shipping, salvage and diving works, drone and video operators and numerous individuals in various capacities were finally brought in on a paid basis.
The organisational and financial sponsorship lay on the private side.
TRANSPORT TOWARDS THE NORTH SEA
For the rescue operation, a network of heavy maritime specialist equipment was assembled at short notice. The central unit was the barge (also known as a transport barge) “Jürgen”, specially prepared for the operation and owned by BVT Chartering and Logistics GmbH and SET Schiffbau- u. Entwicklungsgesellschaft Tangermünde mbH, which served as the transport barge for the live humpback whale. The towing convoy was supplemented by the vessels “Robin Hood” (JEB Bereederungs GmbH & Co. KG) as well as “Fortuna B” and “Arne Tiselius” from O.S. Energy GmbH – Marine Power Solutions. In addition, there were several pontoons, workboats and jet skis, as well as dredging technology with a flushing pump, high-pressure flushing technology and diving equipment.
Specially procured lifting straps with load capacities of at least ten tonnes were provided for salvage and securing. To stabilise the animal, 43 big bags filled with a total of around 36 tonnes of gravel were used, 35 of them in the water off the island of Poel and eight on the barge. The equipment was supplemented by generators, hoses, a life raft and other maritime safety equipment, as well as sprinkling technology intended for the towing journey.
The whale swimming into the transport barge on 28 April 2026 was watched live by around 100,000 people on the channel of the news agency NEWS5 alone. The worldwide audience figure is not known, but is likely to have been significantly higher.
PROTECT
Based on the experience gained, GWRO is able to develop its own rescue protocol for comparable large whale events. In future, this should enable faster assessment of the situation, clearly defined responsibilities, standardised technical procedures, and the coordinated involvement of specialised professionals. Project-leading management is indispensable. It must bring together and control the operational, technical, and organisational processes.
However, effective large whale rescue is only possible if state responsibilities and specialised operational expertise work together in a binding manner. For large whale events, close cooperation with the coastal states of Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is therefore of central importance.
The protection of strictly protected large whales is not limited to legal requirements or prohibitions, but demands actionable structures in specific event cases. Large whale events are rare, technically demanding, and regularly time-critical. If responsibilities, expertise, and technical equipment are organised and prepared, there is a high chance of recovering an animal in need of help under reasonable conditions and returning it to suitable waters.
