Mayor Velema’s illness
Mayor Jaap Velema of the municipality of Westerwolde, which includes Ter Apel, has been admitted to the intensive care unit of a hospital. The mayor is suffering from a double pulmonary embolism. Velema will be absent for the foreseeable future, the municipality said.
Velema was recovering from severe pneumonia. Because his complaints worsened, he went to the hospital for examination, where doctors determined that he had an embolism in both lungs. He was then admitted yesterday morning. The mayor’s situation is stable.