Mommark Marina on the Danish island of Als has been open again for months, but has not been fully booked for a long time. "But several people call me every day to ask if we're open after all," reports local harbour master Carsten Kock. The good news, which also applies to the majority of harbours in the entire Danish region, has apparently still not reached many German and Danish boat owners.
After the extreme damage, many harbours in the region were originally supposed to remain closed for the entire season. It was not until mid-March, for example, that Mommark decided to reopen. Around a month later, the entire capacity of up to 60 ships was opened, with catering and camping facilities opening at the same time.
Hardly any support: 1.5 million euros in damage due to storm surge
To make this possible, the company had to raise around 400,000 euros out of its own pocket for the renovations. The total damage amounts to around 1.5 million euros. "We paid for everything ourselves. We didn't get any help." According to Kock, there was only minimal funding for the catering area. All the more reason why we now need guest travellers as a source of income. They make up the vast majority of berths in the small Danish harbour.
So far, however, it has been around half as busy as last year. "Tonight, for example, there were only sixteen. That's far too few for us," explains Mommark's harbour master. The surrounding harbours have also all reopened. "I haven't heard of any harbours that are still closed. Everything is back in operation in Denmark."
Only the entrance to Mommark harbour is currently not in a regular state. Instead of a depth of up to three metres, only around 2.30 metres are currently measured. This is due to the fact that dredging is not permitted from 1 April to 1 August. While this is no problem for motorboaters anyway, it could be a reason for some sailing yachts with a large draught to stay away. However, harbour master Kock already has good news for them: "Dredging will resume at the beginning of August. So far, however, we haven't had any problems with it anyway. At a depth of 2.30 to 2.40 metres, most of them can get through."
