A seven-man water drill detachment from the 101 engineer battalion from Wezep is digging water wells on Ameland. These should help combat wildfires, which are expected to become more frequent due to drier summers.
Three trucks, a shovel, an off-road vehicle, a passenger car, six material containers, a canteen and consultation container and, most strikingly, a meters-high water drilling installation. Defense has seized the Jan Roepespad, just outside Hollum, with large equipment. Drill master Werner (his surname is known to the editors) reaches 61 meters and then encounters a new clay layer. There is no point in drilling even deeper, concludes Commander Perry de Leeuw den Bouter. “Ten meters deeper is very good, but this is also good. We go for a good source.”
Since September, the water drill detachment has been busy making emergency wells on the Wadden Islands. In September, two wells were made on Terschelling, three on Vlieland in October and the soldiers are now tapping into two wells on Ameland. This week near Hollum and next week north of Ballum. “The drought is increasing in the summer. Wildfire risks are greater throughout the country,” explains Foeke Dijkstra, military advisor of the Fryslân Safety Region.
“This is one of the measures with which we want to prevent uncontrollable wildfires,” explains safety officer Lars Brouwer of the municipality of Ameland. The measure is a consequence of the area-oriented approach to nature control, which the Fryslân Fire Department has drawn up for the islands and the Drents Friese Wold. “The last major wildfire was a long time ago, but coincidentally we had a fire last summer near the place where a water well is currently being drilled. Then fortunately the wind worked in our favor.”
‘Grey wave won’t let anything stop it’
Walkers are surprised at the small army green invasion, but do not care about the cordon for security reasons. “We noticed that this gray wave cannot be stopped by anything on Terschelling. If you say something about it, they start about a long time ago, so we don’t do that anymore,” says Commander De Leeuw den Bouter, laughing affably and referring to the Second World War.
“We were already wondering, what are they drilling for here?” responds a couple from Münster, Germany, who are celebrating their holiday around the corner at the Boomhiemke holiday park. “It can’t be water, there’s enough of that.” Yet it is for water, says military advisor Dijkstra. Using salt water for firefighting is harmful to nature and drinking water should be used for its intended purpose.
Defense drills the water wells on behalf of the municipality. This is in the context of ‘military support in the public interest’, Dijkstra explains. At the same time, the job is great training for Defense. This year they have already drilled thirteen other wells. In addition to the Wadden Islands, also in Drenthe, North Brabant, Limburg and on exercises in Romania.
For example, the drilling rig has been used in the past on missions to Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan. “Then we build camps like a residential area and drill wells for the troops,” says De Leeuw den Bouter. “The water is then for sanitary and other purposes.”
Apprenticeship
Defense is also a training place for the ‘101 engineer battalion’, says Dijkstra. “The soldiers can obtain secondary vocational education (MBO) papers from us. For drillers, welders, truck drivers… But of course we hope that they will stay with us.”
The source will be ready on Friday, says De Leeuw den Bouter. A red collision protection system will then be installed around the well button and the fire brigade can pump at least 90 cubic meters of water per hour in an emergency. The commander shows a photo of the well drilled last month in the forest near the Stortemelk campsite on Vlieland. “It is good for 118 cubic meters of water. You can fill thirty fire trucks with that per hour.”
Not an unnecessary luxury, as became clear last summer when a large fire raged in the Eureka apartment complex in the middle of the forest on Vlieland. The local fire brigade then had problems finding sufficient extinguishing water. “We were already going to Vlieland,” says Dijkstra, “but the fire accelerated our deployment there.”