Ownerless SUP triggers large-scale nighttime search at Fuschlsee

The responders initially assumed that a person could have gotten into distress in the water, which is why the large-scale search operation was conducted with a major deployment of rescue resources. Police were also involved and checked in parallel whether a missing persons report had been filed. As police confirmed upon inquiry, no missing persons report had been received from officers at the time of the search.

The operation was called off after several hours around midnight, without the board being assigned to an owner or any person being found in or near the water. The water rescue service stated in this regard that clearly recognizable markings on the board would have allowed a quick telephone clarification of whether the owner was safe. In this case, however, this no longer helped, as the board apparently bore no such markings or these could not be matched.

Role of markings on boards and buoys

The water rescue service emphasized that clear markings on boards and buoys generally help avoid time- and personnel-intensive false alarms and keep rescue resources free for actual emergencies. The incident at Fuschlsee demonstrates the limits of this precaution when corresponding information is missing or the assignment fails. Nothing more specific initially became known about the whereabouts of the board.

Assessment and consequences

The case is part of a series of similar incidents in the region in which drifted sports equipment or buoys trigger search operations because it cannot initially be ruled out that a person has gotten into distress. The responsible authorities are currently evaluating the operation in order to further improve procedures. According to police, there is no indication of a concrete danger situation or an unresolved person case.

The water surface of Fuschlsee was finally inspected after the operation ended; the board was not collected during the search. Local residents were asked to report any missing boards or buoys of their own. In the end, the authorities assumed that no one was still in danger and closed out the operation.