Two flood defenses were built in the city wall of the fortified town of Woudrichem on Tuesday. And that while there is no question of high water at all. The so-called ‘denominations’ must be practiced once every five years, explains Anita van Elteren of the Rivierenland water board. “It was a bit of trial and error, but everything still fits. It went well.”
Thick beams were lowered on Tuesday into the slots of two passages in the city wall of Woudrichem: “It is a very old method, even a medieval one, to be able to close such a gate at extreme high water and also to keep the water out”, says Jacco Koman of the Rivierenland water board. “We had to maneuver a bit, but those beams fit into slots like a jigsaw puzzle. These slots are located on either side of the walls of the Waterpoort and the Loevesteinsepoort. It fits just right.”
“You build a temporary dike in a gate.”
“Once the beams have sunk into the trenches, the space between those beams is filled with sand. When there is a threat of high water, you build a temporary dike in a gate. In this region they call it a cofferdam, but we use the word denomination,” says Koman.
His colleague Anita says that the last exercise was in 2017, so it was time again: “During Tuesday’s exercise we checked whether the shot bars are still in order, how the cooperation with the municipality is going and whether the script is still in order. . The flood barrier was last built in 2018 and that was not an exercise, it was extremely high water at the time.”
“The last time was in January 2018.”
The Waterpoort in Woudrich is one of the first denominations to close when the water rises in the river area, says Koman. “That already happens at a water level in Lobith of 14.10m +NAP. The second gate is a bit higher, so it closes less quickly.”
In an initial reaction, Koman says he is satisfied with the exercise. “But, we will also officially evaluate him.”
The video below shows how the flood barrier was built in 2018 and explains what a cut or a cofferdam is. Extreme high water was expected at Woudrichem in 2018 and the gate had to close.
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