Humpback Whale Timmy Released into North Sea After Baltic Stranding

A rescue team released a humpback whale nicknamed Timmy from a barge into the North Sea on May 2, 2026, after the animal had been stranded in shallow waters near Germany's Baltic coast since March. m. local time (0645 GMT), with the whale freed 70 kilometers from the coast of Skagen, Denmark, according to the German news agency dpa.

M. local time. Karin Walter-Mommert from the rescue initiative stated that the humpback whale Timmy is now swimming on its own and freely, and at least for the time being, in the right direction.

A GPS transmitter was attached to the humpback whale Timmy before its release to track its future location, dpa reported. The whale had been transported toward the North Sea in a flooded cargo ship on April 29, 2026, just before the Danish border in Fehmarn, Germany.

Two entrepreneurs financed a barge to transport the humpback whale Timmy. An initial attempt to save the humpback whale Timmy with inflatable cushions and pontoons was unsuccessful. The environment minister for Germany’s Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state approved an attempt to save the humpback whale Timmy proposed by a private initiative, despite warnings from the scientific community.

German officials gave up on trying to rescue the humpback whale Timmy at the start of April 2026. German officials stated at the start of April 2026 that they believed the humpback whale Timmy could not be saved. The humpback whale Timmy was repeatedly stranded in shallow waters near the coastal city of Wismar.

The humpback whale Timmy freed itself after being stuck on the sandbank near Luebeck and then became stuck again several times. The humpback whale Timmy was first spotted stuck on a sandbank on March 23, 2026, near the city of Luebeck. Unsuccessful efforts to coax the humpback whale Timmy toward deeper seas were live-streamed across the globe.

The humpback whale Timmy's health deteriorated as it became repeatedly stranded in shallow waters near Germany since March 2026. The humpback whale Timmy suffered from a bad skin condition related to the Baltic Sea’s low salt content. The humpback whale Timmy was far from its natural habitat in the Atlantic Ocean.