The heavy rainfall that accompanied the storms of the past few days has led to critically high water levels in the Netherlands' northernmost provinces of Groningen and Friesland.

On Thursday, a dike near the Groningen town of Tolbert was in danger of collapse, but the situation there has since stabilised. On Friday, the condition of a dike along the Eems Canal became critical. About 800 inhabitants of several villages along the canal have been evacuated.

State of emergency
Dozens of residents and soldiers have placed sandbags along a stretch of 400 metres where the canal dike has been seriously weakened. A local state of emergency has been declared. Access roads have been closed off by the police and helicopters are patrolling the area.

Water levels in the east of Groningen have been rising much faster than expected, and the water management authorities have been making an all-out effort to get rid of the excess water. Holes have been dug in the dikes around some of the region’s water-storage polders to allow for faster inundation.

Waterlogged
In neighbouring Friesland, the water management authorities have deployed 80 inspectors to draw up an inventory of locations where dikes need to be raised or reinforced with sandbags.

The situation there is expected to remain critical at least until Sunday because the surplus water in the province’s water basins cannot be pumped out due to the high water level in the Wadden Sea.

However, the dikes and quays which are currently holding the water back are becoming increasingly waterlogged due to the persistent high water levels. “As a result, the risk of collapse is increasing by the day,” a spokesperson said.

A 200-metre section of the dike surrounding the island De Burd near the town of Grou collapsed on Thursday evening. The local council has urged the island’s residents to evacuate. All but ten residents whose homes are located on higher ground have now left the island.

Dangerously high
The torrential rain has quickly raised the water levels in the main Dutch rivers from exceptionally low to dangerously high. Several quays in the town of Dordrecht have already flooded, and the authorities in the province of Limburg – in the southeast of the country - are keeping a close watch on the rising water levels in the river Maas.

Even though the authorities there do not expect problems on the same scale as in the northern provinces, additional pumps have been deployed in several towns along the Maas as heavy rain is forecast up-river in the Ardennes region.

On Monday, the river Rhine is expected to reach over 14 metres above sea level near the town of Lobith, where it enters the Netherlands. This is well below the level which would prompt emergency measures. In January 2010, the river rose to over 15.5 metres above sea level.

(gsh/dd)

© Radio Netherlands Worldwide

Also: Background story on the flooding