Tuskær Rescue Station

The rescue station was established as one of the first in Denmark, as early as 1847. From the very beginning, the station was equipped with a lifeboat, boathouse and a rocket apparatus. The boathouse was later rebuilt, and in 1936, the current rescue station on Rubyvej was erected. Today, it houses an exhibition about the rescue station, which is kept open during the summer.

Over a period of nearly 100 years (until 1953), 606 shipwrecked people have been saved by Tuskær Rescue Station. The station was shut down in the 1970s. 

The photo shows the lifeboat and crew in 1953. 

Fishing boat from Harboøre rescued in 1893

On November 21, 1893, attendant Jesper Olesen was notified by the station in Ferring that "The sea was very rough and that quite a few fishermen from Harboøre were out fishing." He soon found out that "all fishing boats from Fjaltring were ashore." But through his binoculars, he saw a boat out at sea and gave orders to assemble the rescue team. From the beach, they could see that the fishing boat had come ashore, but that another boat had anchored further out, so they launched the lifeboat. "With much exertion, we succeeded in getting across the sandbank out to the boat, and took its crew of 6 men aboard, happily bringing them to land at 11am. The fishing boat, which was from Harboøre and led by Christen Jensen, had anchored and had only one oar, the others destroyed by breakers." 

Stranding of the Ariel, 1897

On February 26, 1897, the steamer Ariel of Amsterdam was stranded off the coast of Fjaltring. There were strong gales and rough seas. When rescuers from Tuskær arrived at the stranding site, the ship stood on the sandbank with its side against the shore, regularly submerged by breaking waves. Four of the crew had already landed in their own boat, but there were 10 left on the ship. After several unsuccessful attempts to connect with the crew using rocket lines, the lifeboat was launched in the morning. The first attempt to launch the lifeboat failed – the boat was filled with water and thrown ashore. Local newspaper Viborg Stifts Tidende reported from the scene: "Several oars were broken, but there was no question of the crew losing heart; each took their place again, as if it was the most natural thing in the world."  The second attempt succeeded, with the help of rescuers from Thorsminde, who "with a rope around their waist followed the boat as far out as possible." The crew of the Ariel was rescued and brought aboard the lifeboat, which “rowed inland and landed successfully."

The Ariel had been loaded with precious goods like coffee, cigars, cocoa, paper and alcohol, which were brought ashore and sold at a salvage auction "at great pain to the local merchants, who suffered for several years as the people had stocked up." 

The salvage steamer Ægir of Lemvig

The stranded Ariel also had many railway lines on board, which the salvage vessel Ægir was in the process of salvaging in the summer of 1899. At noon on June 17, the winds grew in strength and the sea became choppy. The fully loaded Ægir ran aground against the wreck of the Ariel, and "received such a significant leak that the crew felt forced to put it ashore as soon as possible, so as avoid the ship sinking in deep water" as the rescue protocol reads. The crew was not in danger and made it ashore without the help of the rescuers.