SW-INC-0598SeaWise Incidents

north of Wangerooge - A 10 m catamaran loses her mast; a faint Mayday with no name or position brings the sea rescuers, who tow the couple to Hooksiel

A passing sailing yacht heard the call and found the drifting catamaran. The seasick skipper was treated aboard a police patrol boat.

verified · 1 sourceN
Vessel
north of Wangerooge33 ft · Cabin catamaran
When
2026North Sea
Crew
2 aboardAll survived
Conditions
10
Outcome
Rescued
Position
North Sea, about 9 nautical miles north of Wangerooge, Germany
Sea area
German Bight, off the East Frisian Islands
Coordinates
53.94°N, 7.90°EApproximate position
Summary

What happened.

On 25 September 2026 a 10 m catamaran lost her mast about nine miles north of Wangerooge, in light wind. The couple aboard sent a faint Mayday that gave no name or position. A passing yacht found them, and German sea rescuers cut the rig away and towed the boat to Hooksiel.

On the evening of Friday 25 September 2026 a couple were delivering a cabin catamaran of about 10 metres from Scandinavia to Portugal. About nine nautical miles north of the German island of Wangerooge the mast broke, and the boat could no longer be steered. The wind was only force 3, with a long swell. The cause of the failure is not known. At about 17:30 the coast station Bremen Rescue heard a faint Mayday on channel 16. It gave neither the boat's name nor her position. A sailing yacht nearby also heard the call and spotted the catamaran drifting. The rescue cruiser Bernhard Gruben came out from Hooksiel with her daughter boat, and the Federal Police patrol boat Bad Düben joined them at about 18:15. The skipper had become seasick in the violent rolling and was taken aboard the police boat for care. His partner stayed aboard to steer. The crews cut away the mast, sail and rigging, and the catamaran was towed into Hooksiel at about 22:45. No further medical care was needed.

ConditionsEvening of Friday 25 September 2026. Wind Beaufort 3, up to 10 knots, with a long rolling swell and waves of about half a metre. The couple were delivering the boat from Scandinavia to Portugal. Cause of the mast failure not known. Length about 10 m (about 33 ft); name not reported. Pin is hand-set and approximate. Sources: Volksstimme (dpa), 26 September 2026; Yacht (yacht.de), 28 September 2026.
SeaWise noteThe Mayday was heard, but it said nothing about who or where. A passing yacht filled the gap. A distress call needs your boat's name, your position and the nature of the problem, every time. A DSC distress alert sends your position for you.
Lessons learned

What it teaches.

  • 1
    Every Mayday must give the boat's name, position, the problem and the number aboard. Write your position down at regular intervals so you can read it out under stress.
    rig failure rescue
  • 2
    A broken mast hanging over the side can hole the hull. Have bolt cutters or a hacksaw ready to cut the rig free.
    rig failure
  • 3
    Seasickness can take the skipper out of action. Make sure a second person aboard can steer, navigate and use the radio.
    skipper incapacitated
Sources

Where this comes from.

News· Scandinavia & Germany sailing newsKatamaran-Mast gebrochen - Seglerpaar aus Seenot gerettetVisit ↗

SeaWise indexes and links to primary sources; it does not host their reports or media. Crew are referred to by role unless documented consent is on file.

From SeaWise

Procedures involved.

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Record IDSW-INC-0598
Curated bySeaWise editorial
Confidenceverified · 1 source
Record typeIncident

About SeaWise records: We catalogue sailing emergencies with structured metadata and link to primary sources rather than republishing them. Individual crew names are anonymised by default— sources we link to may name them publicly; SeaWise refers to roles ("the skipper", "the crew") on our pages. Submitter identities are always private.