Jochem from volunteer organization Recovery Divers received a message from Sjoerd’s girlfriend on Sunday afternoon, he tells Omroep West. “He had fallen into the water and all the water, and his phone and keys had lost. We quickly drove that way to pop up his things.”
‘Diving equipment would rather not drag along’
After the report, Jochem went to Leidschendam and parked his car along the canal. “Our diving equipment weighs around a hundred kilos in total, you’d rather not drag that from a parking lot,” he says. “Because the road was accessible to destination traffic, we put the car there on the roadside along the cycle path.”
Before Jochem can go into the water, he is stopped by a BOA from Staatsbosbeheer who unsubscribes a fine. “He thought we were not destination traffic and were not allowed to come along the water with our car. While we did have a specific reason to stand there at that time.”
‘No exemption’
Staatsbosbeheer does not agree with Jochem. “The diver was not allowed to stand at this location along the Vliet because he has no exemption,” responds a spokesperson for the organization at Omroep West. “That exemption currently only applies to a houseboat occupant who lives on the path. If the divers want to get on cycle paths more often, it is useful to arrange an exemption from the municipality.”