Switzerland: Survey Ship Level A Capsizes

On 31 August the survey ship Level A capsized by collided with the Belgian-propelled barge on the Rhine at Basel. The four-man crew fell overboard.

Prof. Dr. Volker Boeder, director of the project and Professor of Geodesy and Hydrography at HCU was rescued, but died on Saturday in hospital.

The Level A was commissioned by the Basel urban construction and transportation departments and in collaboration with the Swiss Rhine ports active in Basel, tasked with testing new equipment and technologies for measuring the shipping lanes in the Rhine. Boat and crew had arrived at Basel earlier that week and were due to remain working on the Rhine in Switzerland for a further two weeks.

Dr Walter Pelka, president of the HCU, comments: “At this dreadful time, our thoughts and our sympathies go out to the families of Volker Böder and the captain of the Level A. We are terribly sorry to hear about this disaster. With the loss of professor Böder, we lose someone who was a great expert in his field, whose reputation extended far beyond the HCU Hamburg. Above all, we mourn a sincere, helpful and popular colleague. Words cannot truly express what this loss means to the HCU and the world of geomatics in particular.”

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Subsea World News Staff, September 06, 2012;  Image: hcu-hamburg