In North Holland, the Hollands Noorderkwartier water board has deployed emergency pumps to pump the rainwater that fell last night from the polders as quickly as possible. Particularly on the North Sea coast there was an extreme amount of rain. At 80 to 100 millimeters, it was an amount that normally falls in a month.
“We have beautiful pumping stations, but nothing can cope with these kinds of extremities,” says a spokesperson. “There are agricultural plots with a considerable layer of water, other areas are swampy. And because the water level in the ditches is also high, the water cannot drain.” According to the spokesperson, the water board received many calls from farmers this morning because of the flooding.
The water board uses the pumping stations to lower the water level in ditches, so that space is created there to carry the water away. Normally this is possible with only the pumping stations, but now emergency pumps are also being used at eight locations. In addition, there are also farmers who have brought out emergency pumps themselves. The ‘boezem system’, which consists of large waterways and canals, can handle the water very well.
Pump what you can pump
“There is often water on the land, but now the crops are on it, so you want to prevent it from rotting,” says the spokesperson. “A large area is under water or it is very swampy. We cannot pump on the land itself, but we can pump in the ditches.”
The water board expects to need the emergency pumps for a few more days. If more rain falls in the coming days, the water board will have even more emergency pumps. “It’s all up to you to think about pumping what you can pump,” said the spokesperson.
There was also a lot of nuisance yesterday in the urban area where the water board is active:
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