Last year, German sea rescuers on the North and Baltic Seas helped a total of 3,532 people in 1,938 missions. They had to rescue 103 people from distress at sea alone, as the German Society for the Rescue of Shipwrecked People (DGzRS) in Laboe near Kiel announced. In 2022 they helped 91 people in distress at sea. The total number of missions in 2023 was slightly higher than in the previous year, when 3,289 people were helped in 1,883 missions.
In 2023, emergency services rescued 402 people from imminent danger (2022: 306). They brought sick or injured people from ships, islands or halls to the mainland 304 times (2022: 361). 40 ships or boats were saved from total loss (2022: 39). The sea rescue workers carried out one of the most extensive operations at the end of October after the collision of the cargo ships “Verity” and “Polesie” in the North Sea. Two sailors were rescued and five others died when the “Verity” sank.
