Overview
- The young humpback, first stuck on a sandbank Monday near Timmendorfer Strand, swam free early Friday after moving through the excavated channel.
- Coastguard and state water police vessels are guiding the whale in Lübeck Bay toward the Danish straits as teams work to keep it in open water.
- Experts say the animal is very weak and shows skin problems, and most of the fishing gear was cut away earlier with rope reported still lodged in its mouth.
- Before the breakout, crews spent days creating waves with boats, testing a suction dredger, and finally using two excavators to dig a safe passage rather than risk towing the 12–15 meter whale.
- The journey remains uncertain because humpbacks are not native to the Baltic, where low‑salt water can harm skin and weak tides offer little lift, raising the risk of re‑stranding on the long route to the North Sea and Atlantic.