The Coast Guard on Lake Garda closed summer 2026 with 309 people rescued and 107 search and rescue operations coordinated from its operations centre in Salò. The service relied on 50 personnel and 11 vessels spread along the lake’s three shores, as part of the “Mare e laghi sicuri 2026” (Safe Seas and Lakes 2026) operation. The operation covered Italy’s large lakes, with units on Garda, Como and Maggiore under the coordination of the Lakes Operational Unit in Milan.
Across all the lakes, search and rescue missions numbered 244, with 655 people assisted, 92 of them in imminent danger of death. On Lake Garda, agreements signed with the Prefectures and the Fire Service entrust the Coast Guard with coordinating rescues. Information is shared between operations rooms, so the closest vessels can be sent to an emergency and response times are reduced. During the season, 74 pleasure craft were rescued or assisted.
The most demanding rescues
On 31 July, the crew of vessel Gc A58 rescued six people, four adults and two children, stranded on the shoals known as the Altare near San Biagio Island. The operation lasted around two hours and was coordinated from the Salò operations room. It took place at night during a storm, with strong wind and waves of about 1.5 metres. All six came ashore safe and sound at Porto Torchio.
On 2 August, in the waters of Trentino, the Coast Guard rescued 22 children taking part in a sailing regatta. Their small boats had capsized in strong winds from an unforecast weather front. In July, on the Veneto shore, two exhausted young foreign tourists were spotted in the water 800 metres from the shore off Malcesine.
Boating checks and fines
Alongside rescues, there was enforcement. Coast Guard units, which operate from the bases of Salò, Desenzano, Bardolino and Torbole, carried out 513 missions and 1,795 checks on recreational boating. They recorded 389 administrative violations and seized three boats.
On 29 and 30 July, 97 checks in the Gulf of Salò and along the Toscolano Maderno shoreline led to ten fines totalling 6,000 euros. Four went to jet ski riders sailing at night, two to boaters caught performing dangerous manoeuvres, two to those motoring in areas reserved for swimming and one for a breach of the boating code. A boater who was clearly intoxicated, with a blood alcohol level of 1.21 measured in port together with the Valtenesi local police, had his boating licence withdrawn.
Prevention and a submerged rock
On prevention, in August the Coast Guard and the Navigazione Laghi ferry service began handing out a ministerial booklet on board their boats, setting out the rules for staying safe on the water. On 10 September, the Salò operations centre reported a submerged rock about 100 metres from the shore, off the Bergamini beach in Peschiera del Garda.
