They were desperate at Ron’s Total Dog Care in Tilburg. Last Friday the water rose so high that the entire company site was flooded. On Wednesday morning, employees of the dog company dug a drainage ditch with a municipal excavator. Owner Ron Kusters is happy with the idea: “The ditch works fantastic, we see the water moving away from our site.”
The company has been experiencing flooding due to heavy rain since November, but last Friday was literally the straw that broke the camel’s back. The nearby Wolterbeek pond overflowed so much that the grounds of Rons Total Dog Care were flooded. That day the fire brigade rescued a number of chickens and goats that were in danger of drowning. The site was flooded with up to 60 centimeters of water in some parts. Owner Ron Kusters immediately contacted the municipality on Friday: “I said: help, we are drowning here.”
“This is the last dry part of the site.”
A lot of rain was forecast again on Wednesday. That was a sign for owner Ron to take action. His entrance building was still safe, but if the water rose another centimeter, the water would rush in. He came up with a plan to remove the water from his property himself and informed the municipality of Tilburg. The municipality supplied an excavator to dig a drainage ditch.
And Ron started working on that on Wednesday. The machine dug a new ditch, a breakthrough between the flooded terrain and a still dry ditch. And that appears to help. “The dug ditch works fantastically, we see the water moving away from our site.”
Although the water can now be drained, this does not solve everything. The flooding has caused damage. The company has been without power and plumbing for days. In addition, they can no longer care for dogs, give courses or offer daytime activities. According to Ron, the municipality is responsible for the consequences of his flooded site. According to him, the surrounding drainage options are the responsibility of the municipality of Tilburg.
“Thank you to all the people who have given us help, love and warmth. It is a warm bath.”
The municipality of Tilburg has announced that an investigation is being conducted into the precise cause of the flooding: “This should show who is responsible for the damage incurred. For now, our focus is mainly on draining the water as quickly as possible. That is why we have We also made an excavator available.”
Ron received many responses to Omroep Brabant’s earlier article: “Thank you to all the people who have given us help, love and warmth. It is a warm bath.”
