It was an exciting night for Boy Schuiling, owner of ‘t Pakhuus on Texel: the seawater crashed against the walls of his restaurant. According to Schuiling, the water has never been this high before.
The restaurant is located in the harbor of Oudeschild. Restaurant owners there have to take high water into account, so when it became clear that Storm Pia would hit the province, precautions were already taken.
Schuiling says on NH Radio that the water rose to 2.66 meters high during the night. The entrance to the restaurant is 1.60 meters away. So a meter of water crashed against the entrance to the restaurant. They tried to keep the water out with bulkheads and water pumps.
“We stayed all night. In the 9 years that we have had this restaurant, this was the highest measurement. The water got higher and higher, so that was really exciting,” says Schuiling.
1900 liters per minute
The restaurant itself remained dry, except for a little water that entered through cracks. This does not apply to the outbuilding, where at its peak 1900 liters of water were pumped out per minute. “It was exciting, but also really special.”
Schuiling and his partner only went home at a quarter past six this morning. The restaurant opened again at 12 o’clock this afternoon. “Just keep going!”, says Schuiling. “And that’s a good thing, because Christmas is just around the corner.”
The restaurant owners in Oude Schild have been in contact with each other. They all weathered the storm well.