Jul 29, 2023 at 2:01 PMUpdate: 15 minutes ago
Five hundred Dutch people will be picked up by tour buses in Northern Italy on Saturday so that they can be taken home. SOS International calls the operation quite a puzzle because of the holiday rush. “We hope that the first holidaymakers will be back tomorrow morning.”
Hundreds of Dutch people reported car damage to their insurer as a result of stormy weather last week. Many cars were totaled, preventing the owners from driving home. SOS International then decided to arrange bus transport together with four other emergency centers.
The first buses will leave from Northern Italy on Saturday between 3 and 7 PM. Another hundred holidaymakers will be picked up on Sunday. More buses are expected to run next week.
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“It will be quite a puzzle,” says a spokesperson for SOS International, which coordinates bus transport. “We pick up people from twelve campsites and a few other pick-up points in Italy. And everyone has to be dropped off in a different part of the Netherlands.”
Most stranded Dutch people are currently staying around Lake Garda. In the night from Monday to Tuesday, that region was hit by a severe storm with hail and thunder. Hailstones the size of tennis balls fell.
Emergency workers on site distribute the Dutch holidaymakers in such a way that each bus drives to a different region. The buses run to Eindhoven, Arnhem, Breda, Utrecht, Venlo, Rotterdam and Amsterdam.
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Busy roads due to holiday traffic
The first buses should arrive in the Netherlands between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. on Sunday. But especially this weekend, peak traffic is expected on the holiday roads. On Saturday, traffic on several European roads quickly came to a standstill.
Although it is not yet officially Black Saturday (the day when all Parisians head south), holidaymakers should expect large crowds every Saturday from July 29 to August 19. As a result, SOS International cannot guarantee that the buses will actually arrive at the expected time of arrival.
‘All hands on deck’
The ANWB has also traveled to Italy to help the Dutch. The first hundred damaged cars have already been returned to the Netherlands.
Many more will follow: the traffic service alone received 550 reports from the region around Lake Garda about damaged cars that need to be brought to the Netherlands. A spokesperson says most reports were made around the town of Peschiera del Garda, on the south side of the popular lake.
Technicians also help people on site, for example with a new windscreen or new roof hatch. “Eighty to a hundred cars can be helped with emergency repairs,” says the spokesperson. Those people can then safely drive home themselves, after which the damage can be completely repaired in the Netherlands.
The operation of the ANWB also requires the necessary logistical preparation. “It’s all hands on deck at the moment,” the spokesperson concludes.
Show only the PictureShow only the PictureDamaged cars from holidaymakers arrive in the Netherlands
2023-07-29 12:01:00
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