Sea-Help is known as Europe’s largest breakdown and recovery service for pleasure craft, providing assistance in non-life-threatening situations. Sometimes, however, SeaHelp members also receive a “special service” beyond this, as the operation at the SeaHelp base in Empuriabrava in the Spanish municipality of Castelló d’Empúries on the Gulf of Roses (province of Girona, Catalonia) shows.
The SeaHelp base in Empuriabrava is located in the largest marina in Europe, just two kilometres from Castelló d’Empúries, where the Fira of Feixell d’ Ocassió is traditionally held.
The SeaHelp base on the Costa Brava has been managed for two years by certified boat expert Axel Albrot, who is also an expert in boat insurance. “From our new base in Empuriabrava, we are on the spot in no time when it comes to providing fast, competent and uncomplicated assistance to recreational skippers,” says Axel Albrot, regardless of whether the engine breaks down, the battery is flat or the tank is empty, or if there is a sudden water ingress on board.
SeaHelp is on the spot in no time from the base in Empuriabrava when it comes to helping sports skippers quickly, competently and easily
Sometimes the membership with SeaHelp pays off twice over, as it turned out a few days ago: “Just before midday, I received a call from a boat crew telling me that they had a big problem,” says Axel Albrot. What had happened?
The crew had dropped an anchor, and when they wanted to weigh anchor again to return to their home port around 20 kilometres away, it turned out that the anchor was stuck. There was no chance of getting it loose.
Just five minutes later, Axel Albrot was on the scene with his rescue boat Anna. The boat crew estimated the depth of the anchor to be around six metres. Albrot put on his mask and fins and dived down. It quickly became apparent that the anchor was caught between two boulders – but not at a depth of six metres, but 14 metres.
The motor yacht’s anchor had snagged at a depth of 14 metres – no problem for SeaHelp man Axel Albrot
Albrot decided to connect the motor yacht’s anchor rope to his own towline under water using a shackle. He then pulled against the wind direction with his 350 hp rescue boat – with success, as it soon turned out: the anchor was free! The yacht in search of help breathed a sigh of relief, hauled up the anchor and set off for its home harbour.
Just as Axel Albrot was rewinding the tow rope of his rescue boat, the same boat crew called again. This time the “engine had no power”, said the perplexed crew. No problem for Albrot – he arrived at the motor yacht again just four minutes later.
“When I reached the boat, I could see clear traces of petrol or oil on the surface of the water, which came from the damaged boat,” said Albrot after the mission. “I decided to tow the boat directly to a qualified workshop so that the crew could be helped as quickly and effectively as possible.”</em
After a total of 2.5 hours, the mission was over. At the end, SeaHelp operations manager Albrot drove the two crew members to their home in Empuriabrava – so their membership had been doubly worthwhile for the casualties.