King’s Day passed without major incidents. However, it was so busy in some inner cities that municipalities called on partygoers to stop coming. But according to the Red Cross and the police, the atmosphere remained pleasant. Also in Rotterdam, where 75,000 people tried to catch a glimpse of the royal family.
“No significant incidents” have been seen in the port city and in Amsterdam, police spokespersons report. According to the corps, “a nice party” was celebrated.
The protest action in Rotterdam against the royal family has not caused any problems either. Various action groups had warned in advance that they would stand along the route of the royal family with hundreds of demonstrators to protest against King’s Day. They see the holiday as a ‘waste of money’.
It was the tenth time that King’s Day was celebrated. Before that, it was known as Queen’s Day or Princess Day for 128 years. King Willem-Alexander celebrated his birthday by exploring Rotterdam by walking tour and water taxi. An event with musicians, acrobats and dancers awaited along the route.
“Actually, I want to ask the mayor if I can do the round again,” said Willem-Alexander afterwards. “To be able to celebrate my birthday and also ten years of kingship with you today in this very special city, together with my family, has done me a lot of good.”
The king reflected on the “difficult times” that the Dutch are going through. “There are difficult times ahead of us. But what Rotterdam has shown, how you can work on something together without it mattering where you come from, it shows that we have a fantastic Netherlands in the 21st century,” said the king. “You all are kings and queens.“
Boa bitten in the face in Breda
King’s Day was not celebrated peacefully everywhere. In Breda, for example, an extraordinary investigating officer (boa) was bitten in the face. Two men attacked the boas because an area was just closed to the public. According to the municipalities, there were already too many partygoers. The men wanted to enter the area.
The boa was treated on the spot by paramedics. The Red Cross was also on site in many cities. The organization spoke of a great atmosphere.
Red Cross helps with broken bones and hypothermia
The Red Cross was in Amsterdam with 75 people at eight different locations. Nevertheless, the most serious incidents occurred in Utrecht. There, aid workers had to help a number of hypothermic victims during King’s Night. There were also several broken feet and ankles. “Everything went well.”
In the Northern Netherlands, too, parties could be celebrated peacefully. For example, the municipality of Leeuwarden reports that King’s Day passed “manageably and without incident”. This may have to do with the cold weather: the municipality saw that festivities started slower due to the cooler temperatures.
Many revelers used public transport to get home. According to a spokesman for the NS, this resulted in manageable crowds. In some cases, people were asked to wait for the next train if the first train was completely full. “Especially in the Randstad and Breda, people are now slowly heading home.”
2023-04-27 20:09:00
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