Whale stranded off Germany swims to freedom after days of efforts to save it

Rescuers used boats and excavators to try to guide 10-metre long sea mammal to deeper waters

A humpback whale stranded on Germany’s Baltic Sea coast since early this week has freed itself and swum into deeper waters, rescuers said on Friday.

A flotilla of vessels were following the weakened animal at a distance, hoping to help guide it into the North Sea and toward the Atlantic Ocean, its natural habitat.