Overview

• As of September 15, 2025, 321 people drowned nationwide, 33 fewer than in the same period of 2024, according to the DLRG summer report.
• Men accounted for about 84 percent of victims, including 45 deaths among 21–30-year-olds, with only one woman in that age group.
• Fatalities clustered in unguarded waters: 142 in lakes and ponds and 116 in rivers and streams, compared with 13 in swimming pools.
• June recorded the highest monthly toll during a sustained spell of sunny weather, while July and August posted year-on-year declines.
• Regional patterns diverged, with Bavaria, Hamburg, Hesse and Thuringia rising year on year, as NRW officials reported fewer Rhine incidents and rescue deployments after mid-August bathing bans.