LOOK. Dike in Maastricht partly washed away, houseboats evacuated | Abroad

Rijkswaterstaat in the Netherlands reports that the spillway at Bosscherveld (Maastricht) has been damaged. A spillway is a lowered section in a dike over which water can flow at high water levels. “Part of the lining of the spillway has become loose and washed away by the force of the water,” the agency is investigating what remedial measures it should take. There is no danger to the environment.

According to the fire brigade, there are about fifteen houseboats on the spillway near the Maas and the Zuid-Willemsvaart. Initial images show that the water is flowing quickly at Bosscherveld and that the fire brigade is busy evacuating some boats. A houseboat resident told regional broadcaster ‘1 Limburg’ that this is the second time things have gone wrong with the spillway: “It would not happen again, the municipality of Maastricht said.” She speaks of a dangerous situation and suspects that the boats will move.

The Limburg Water Board reports that the stream system is “now quite full”. “We are constantly monitoring the situation and, as a water board, we have therefore scaled up to coordination phase 2,” can be read on the site.

The water in the Maas is rising sharply again from Wednesday and is expected to reach its peak near Maastricht on Thursday. That water takes three days to reach North Limburg. The municipality of Maasgouw in Central Limburg has closed roads in several villages that are likely to be flooded.

On Thursday, the Maas reached a water level that occurs on average once every three years, according to the Water Management Center of Rijkswaterstaat. Limburg Water Board expects a lot of flooding. The municipality warns that it is very dangerous to ignore prohibition signs in the floodplains.

The Maas in Limburg will have to process a significant amount of rainwater from France and the Ardennes in the coming days, according to the water board.