Of the 114 offences recorded, two boaters in the jurisdiction of the Hamburg waterway police stood out particularly negatively with breath alcohol levels of 1.11 and 1.25 per mille respectively. The waterway police in Kiel also recorded alcohol offences, and in one case a check carried out north of Laboe even ended with "resistance to law enforcement officers", as it is called in official German, as well as two blood samples being taken. Two people on board the boat that was checked had previously caught the officers' attention due to their slurred speech. One person refused the breath alcohol test offered and resisted. The other person was tested for 1.7 per mille.
From drunk driving to forged boating licences
There was also a special case in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Among other things, a counterfeit pleasure craft licence was seized there. Overall, 80 administrative offences and six criminal offences were reported by the forces deployed during the week of checks. The editorial team has detailed figures from two federal states and Hamburg.
In Schleswig-Holstein, 192 recreational craft were inspected, including 156 motorboats and 31 sailing boats. A total of 34 offences were detected (motorboats: 30, sailboats: 2, others: 2). The officers subsequently filed two criminal charges and eight misdemeanour charges and issued 24 warnings, which were accompanied by a fine. The two criminal charges were for the case outside Laboe described above (1 x § 316 StGB drunk driving, 1 x § 113 StGB resisting law enforcement officers). The vast majority of the offences detected, which resulted in warnings and administrative offence reports, were related to the provisions of the Maritime Traffic Regulations, according to Kiel.
Only a few complaints on Hamburg waters
As part of the "Maritime Safety Days", the Hamburg waterway police inspected a total of 88 watercraft and 113 people. Fortunately, the majority of the checks were carried out without any complaints. Eight deficiency reports were issued, in particular due to missing papers and minor defects, and one criminal case was initiated on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. In addition, four misdemeanour reports were issued (1x violation of the right-hand traffic regulations, 1x disregard of navigation signs, 2x illegal navigation in certain parts of the port).
In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the water police carried out the most checks
For Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the results of the inspection week are as follows: A total of 233 vessels were checked (pleasure craft: 193; sailing boats: 2, charter yachts: 31, commercial boats: 5 and 2 personal watercraft). A total of three offences were recorded regarding the operation of a vessel under the influence of alcohol in accordance with the SeeSchStrO. Furthermore, a total forgery of a boating licence was detected and the owner was charged with forgery. In total, the number of offences recorded amounted to 29 criminal offences and administrative offences.
17 skippers were travelling faster than permitted
Special speed checks were also carried out in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania: Out of 122 vehicles, 17 were travelling too fast. Rental boats were also the focus of the checks: During 39 checks (38 motorboats, 1 sailing yacht), seven offences were reported, three of which were in accordance with the Sea Sports Boat Ordinance.
The "Maritime Safety Days" are intended to promote increased preventative checks of all road users on the water. The aim is "to prevent impairment and damage to shipping and pleasure craft traffic", says police inspector Sebastian Seibel, deputy press officer at the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern State Waterway Police Office. Above all, however, according to Seibel: "The next subject control period will take place soon."
