In March 2026 a humpback whale came ashore repeatedly on Timmendorfer Strand, a popular holiday beach on Germany’s Baltic Coast. ‘Timmy’ was in a bad way. The Baltic’s brackish, shallow waters are potentially fatal for humpbacks, and the expert’s recommendation was for ‘palliative care’, ie keep Timmy wet and let him/her die.
But weeks passed and locals couldn’t just stand by and watch such a public tragedy. Influencers jumped on the ‘rescue Timmy’ bandwagon and nationwide appeals plus wealthy entrepreneurs raised the money to transport Timmy on a barge for release in the North Sea. The Mecklenburg Vorpommern government went along with the popular movement and approved the process, prioritizing votes before science.
The rescue didn’t go well, particularly when a drone video of the barge showed Timmy banging himself against the walls. But the money was there, the job was done, and the release, off the shores of Denmark on May 2, seemed hopeful.
Within a couple of weeks Timmy was found dead, and the recriminations started. An agonized nation that had been divided from the beginning, needed to find someone to blame.