Cities and municipalities will close several parks and nature domains tomorrow as a safety measure against the expected stormy weather. The latest weather forecasts announce gusts of wind between 100 and 130 km/h for Friday between 2 and 7 p.m. That means the risk of uprooted trees and damage to buildings.
In Antwerp All urban parks and cemeteries will be closed Friday at 12 noon due to the predicted stormy weather. In principle, they will open again in the course of Saturday, after a check by city employees. The city reports this in a press release. The city decided to temporarily close the urban parks in the course of Friday to visitors, sports clubs and concession holders.
Facilities located in parks will be closed if stormy weather has an impact on availability or accessibility. For example, the Middelheim Museum will be closed during the storm. The roof terrace of the MAS is closed. The museum is open.
The cemeteries are also closed to visitors because of the presence of monumental trees and funerary monuments. The planned funerals will only take place where possible, the funeral directors will be notified.
In the whole The province of Antwerp the green and recreational areas will be closed to walkers and cyclists from Friday morning to Saturday afternoon until storm Eunice has passed. Prinsenpark (Retie), High Sleeve (Kasterlee), Hertberg (recovers), the Averegten (Heist-op-den-berg), Vrijbroek Park (Mechelen), Broek De Naeyer (Willebroek), Rivierenhof (Deurne), Vrieselhof (Oelegem) and Kesselse Heide (niles) are completely closed to walkers and cyclists.
The provincial recreational areas are also taking precautions. The hoarse close its forest area and it silver lake keeps the day recreation closed. The Lilse Bergen and Arboretum Kalmthout closely monitor the situation on site and intervene if necessary.
On Saturday morning, the damage is first measured and cleaned up where necessary. In the course of the (morning) afternoon, the domain guards then open the gates again.
Still in Antwerp tonight, the loose parts of the stretch ceiling in the central access to Opera pre-metro station preventively removed by the predicted stormy weather. The stretch ceiling is a synthetic fabric that is hung as a finish under the actual roof. Due to the strong wind, some cracks in the stretch ceiling were noticed and followed up in recent weeks. That is why the city, together with the fire brigade and De Lijn, will now remove part of the ceiling as a precaution during the coming night. After all, the ceiling runs over the underground metro lines and could cause nuisance in case of severe weather.
The works will take place in the night from Thursday to Friday. The timetable will not be affected, as no trams will pass through the station at the time of the works. In the meantime, the City of Antwerp is also looking for a technical alternative that is structurally more resistant to extreme weather conditions.
In East Flanders, the province closes all provincial domains, forests and nature reserves. Hiking trails are demarcated, outdoor sports areas may not be used and golf courses are also closed. All forests and nature reserves are prohibited during stormy weather, even if the entrances are not physically closed with, for example, a nadar fence or ribbon.
Swimming pools and sports complexes will remain open. In provincial domain The Gavers the campsite and the youth hostel will also remain accessible. The forests of Provincial domain Puyenbroeck are closed on Thursday.
In Ghent Parks, forests and cemeteries are closed on Friday. The city warns of wind gusts of up to 130 kilometers per hour. The RMI has announced code orange throughout the province from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. The advice is to stay indoors if possible and not to park vehicles under trees.
In Aalst The city council has decided to move the opening of the winter fair from Friday to Saturday evening. In the meantime, the foorkramers must take the necessary measures to secure their installations and constructions.
The coast, and by extension the entire province of West Flanders is preparing for storm Eunice. Gusts of gusts of 120 to 150 kilometers per hour are expected.
The breakwaters will be opened from February 17 to February 19 at 8 a.m Ostend closed. Sports park De Schorre is not accessible on Friday 18 February.
In Blankenberge the walkway to the Pier and the two picket fences will be closed from Friday afternoon. The Albert Park will be closed and there is a parking ban in Koning Boudewijnlaan because there are old trees there.
It is generally recommended not to go for walks in parks and not to park cars under trees. It is also recommended to avoid the seawall and the beach. Governor Decaluwé also asks for caution for tower cranes. Provincial domains are closed.
The provincial parks in Flemish Brabant will also remain closed on Friday due to the stormy weather. The provincial domains in houses (borough of Halle) and Kessel-Lo (sub-municipality of Leuven) will remain closed all day. The Half Moon domain in Diest will be closed to all access both Friday and Saturday. In the last provincial park, Het Vinne in salt lion, it is practically impossible to close off all entrances. People are strongly advised not to go there.
In provincial capital Leuven All parks will also be closed, the local police report. Parks that cannot be physically locked will have signage warning people to remain cautious. The situation will be evaluated on Saturday and any damage will be cleaned up, and it will be examined whether the parks can open again.
Also the city Diest has already announced that it will keep some parks closed. In addition to Halve Maan Park, this also concerns the Citadelbos, Warandepark and Park Cerckel. The closure applies here on both Friday and Saturday.
Brussels Environment has decided to restrict access to parks, forests and parking spaces in the Sonian Forest to close from 12 noon on Friday, because storm Eunice is moving over our country and strong gusts of 80 to 120 kilometers per hour are expected in Brussels.
A notice will be posted at the entrances to the green spaces and the park rangers will inform the population. Inspection, cleanup and security will take place after the storm warning when the green spaces will be open to the public again.
Weather permitting, Brussels Environment will reopen access to parks, forests and parking spaces in the Sonian Forest on Saturday morning at 8 am. In the meantime, everyone is advised to avoid the area around trees during closing time.
Brussels Airport keeps a close eye on the weather forecasts. The airport has procedures in place depending on the severity of the storm. “Together with all partners, we are of course keeping an eye on this, through the weather forecasts and the information we receive via (air traffic controller, ed.) skeyes,” said spokeswoman Ihsane Chioua Lekhli. “For the time being, it is not expected that there would be a lot of impact, but we are of course monitoring the situation.”
The spokeswoman also emphasizes that the airport has procedures for stormy weather. This concerns, for example, the extra protection of the material on the tarmac from a certain wind speed or the temporary non-use of passenger bridges.
In the Netherlands, KLM cancels 167 flights due to storm Eunice on Friday. The Dutch airline reports that strong gusts of wind are expected on Friday. “That ensures that we will have very limited operations at Schiphol tomorrow.” In addition, Friday’s weather can also lead to delays, KLM says.
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