A humpback whale stranded on Germany's Baltic Sea coast has freed itself and swum into deeper waters, rescuers confirmed on Friday. The roughly 10-metre-long mammal was first spotted on Monday stuck in shallow water off Niendorf near Lübeck.
Rescuers spent days trying to guide the whale to safety using boats to create waves and excavators to dig sand. On Thursday, earth-moving equipment on a pontoon was used to dredge a channel through the sand. Overnight into Friday, the whale 'gathered its forces' and freed itself, according to marine biologist Robert Marc Lehmann.
Lehmann cautioned that the whale remains 'very ill' and has a long journey ahead to reach the Atlantic Ocean. The animal had been entangled in a fishing net, most of which was removed by rescuers. Experts from Sea Shepherd also noted a skin disease on the whale.
A flotilla of vessels, including two from the Schleswig-Holstein state water police, is following the whale at a distance, hoping to guide it through the straits between Germany, Denmark and Sweden into the North Sea and onward to the Atlantic. State premier Daniel Günther thanked rescue volunteers, saying 'all their digging had finally paid off.'
