Water levels in Dutch ditches and rivers continue to rise. Heavy rain is also expected on Christmas Day, while pumping stations are already draining maximum water in some places. “In fact, every drop is too much.”
“Our pumping stations are running at 100 percent capacity,” says Delta Water Board spokesman Drents Overijsselsee as he emerges from a meeting. He is in Zwolle when NU.nl contacts him. Fortunately it's dry there at the moment.
The water is so high that the water barely reaches it. There is annoyance here and there. “The ditch is completely filled to the brim.” By draining the water as much as possible, the water board wants to make sure the water level drops so more can be added. “It's all hands on deck.”
Because of their flooded floodplains, beavers also seek out higher areas. That's why the Water Board closely monitors the dams, because if beavers start digging into the dams, it could pose an additional risk.
“All the rivers are full,” says a spokesman for the Rhein and IJssel Water Board. The Water Board has already taken several measures before Christmas. For example, a lot of extra pumps were installed and a passage in the dam near Tolkameer was closed.
0:43The municipality of Twente was flooded by continuous rain
“We check every day.”
“We inspect every day,” the spokesman says. There is also a crisis team and ongoing contact with the app.
A Limburg Water Board spokesman will attend a meeting in Roermond about the situation from 11am. “We'll keep an eye on that.” Like his colleagues on other water boards, he certainly didn't wake up last night because of an emergency.
High water is expected
The danger is not over yet, because more rain is on the way. “It's serious,” says Delta Water Board spokesman Drents Overijsselsee.
The Rhine and IJssel Water Board expects the waters in the Rhine and IJssel to rise by at least two meters in the coming days.
IJssel is a branch of the Rhine River. The latter enters our country from Germany. For this reason, the Water Authority remains in contact with its eastern neighbors about the measures it is taking.
Everyone will want to catch a glimpse of the high tide at Christmas
The spokesman believes “everyone will want to look at the water levels rising at Christmas.” It advises people to be careful and not damage the dams, for example, by parking their cars on the edge of the dam. “We don't need that now.”
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