A privately funded rescue operation is underway to save a humpback whale stranded in the shallow waters off Poel, a small island in the Baltic Sea on Germany's northern coast. The whale, nicknamed Timmy by the public and media, has been stuck there since late March — more than two weeks — and the operation is now entering what German authorities are calling its critical phase.

Rescuers, backed financially by entrepreneur Walter Gunz, co-founder of the Munich-based electronics retail chain Media Markt, and businesswoman Karin Walter-Mommert, are attempting to slide an air cushion and a net beneath the animal to lift it off the seabed. The plan is then to haul Timmy onto a platform between two pontoons and tow him by tugboat toward the North Sea and, ultimately, the Atlantic Ocean. The effort has been repeatedly delayed by administrative hurdles — permits have had to be obtained at each stage — and workers have had to keep the whale's skin moist by covering it with wet cloths and spraying it with water. The whale, estimated to weigh between 12 and 15 tonnes and measuring around 12 metres in length, reacted with visible agitation when a diver approached on Friday, thrashing its tail fluke and rotating nearly 90 degrees before settling again.

The operation is deeply controversial. Humpback whales — which are found in all the world's oceans and normally prefer open water — are believed to navigate using the Earth's magnetic field and the position of the sun, making the murky, shallow, low-salinity waters of the Baltic particularly disorienting for them. Timmy's condition has deteriorated significantly: his skin is infected with fungus and in places has cracked open, potentially allowing bacteria and viruses to enter. He may also have a rope obstructing his oesophagus, preventing him from feeding, and wounds consistent with propeller strikes have been identified on his back. After lying in the same spot for so long, vets fear his internal organs may have sustained damage from the sustained pressure of his own weight.

Greenpeace and a number of marine biologists oppose the rescue attempt, arguing the animal is too sick and weakened to survive the ordeal. Whale expert and social media commentator Robert Marc Lehmann, who had supported an earlier rescue effort at Timmendorfer Strand, has come out firmly against the current operation, saying in a video that the whale should be allowed to die in peace. Critics warn that even if Timmy is successfully towed to open water, he could simply drown, lacking the strength to swim independently. The German Marine Museum has withheld its technical support, with its director previously expressing serious doubts about the operation's chances of success.

Supporters counter that every chance, however slim, should be taken. The case has gripped Germany for weeks, drawing large crowds of onlookers to the shores of Poel and sparking a wider debate about when human intervention in animal suffering does more harm than good. Whether the rescue succeeds or not, the episode has drawn fresh attention to the risks whales face from fishing nets, ship traffic, and disorientation in enclosed coastal waters.