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North Sea flood of 1953

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Natural Disasters

   The North Sea flood of 1953 and the associated storm combined to create
   a major natural disaster which affected the coastlines of the
   Netherlands and England on the night of 31 January 1953 – 1 February
   1953. Belgium, Denmark and France were also affected by flooding and
   storm damage.

   A combination of a high spring tide and a severe European windstorm
   caused a storm tide, a tidal surge of the North Sea up to 3.36 m, which
   overwhelmed sea defences and caused extensive flooding.

   Officially, 1,835 people were killed in the Netherlands, mostly in the
   south-western province of Zeeland. 307 were killed in the United
   Kingdom, in the counties of Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex.

   Further loss of life exceeding 230 occurred on watercraft along
   Northern European coasts as well as in deeper waters of the North Sea;
   the ferry MV Princess Victoria was lost at sea in the North Channel
   with 132 fatalities, and many trawlers sank.

North Sea flood in the Netherlands

   In the night of 31 January/ 1 February 1953 many dikes in the provinces
   of Zeeland, Zuid-Holland and Noord-Brabant proved not to be resistant
   to the combination of spring tide and a northwesterly storm. On both
   the islands and the mainland large areas of country were completely
   flooded with water. Flooding of islands and polders killed 1,835 people
   and forced the emergency evacuation of 70,000 more. An estimated 10,000
   animals drowned, and 4,500 buildings were destroyed. Floods covered 9%
   of Dutch farmland, and sea water inundated 2,000 km² (800 mi²) of
   polders. Total damage was estimated at 895 million Dutch guilders. Many
   people still commemorate the dead on February 1st.

Warnings

   At the time of the disaster, none of the local radio stations broadcast
   at night, and many of the smaller weather stations operated only during
   the day, as a result of which the warnings of the KNMI did not
   penetrate the calamity area in time. People did not receive warning and
   were consequently unable to prepare for the impending flood. Telephone
   and telegraph networks were disrupted, and within hours amateur radio
   operators went in to the affected areas with their home-made radio
   equipment to form a voluntary emergency radio network. These
   well-organized radio amateurs worked tirelessly, providing radio
   communications for 10 days and nights, and were the only people
   maintaining contact with the outside world. In addition to the disaster
   happening during the night, it was Saturday night. As a result, many
   offices in the calamity area were unmanned.

Resulting damage

   The floods put large parts of Zuid-Holland, Zeeland and Noord-Brabant
   under water. At Cadzand water came over the dike, and at Kruiningen the
   water drove in through the ferry dock coupure which had been left open.
   In a very short time the Kruiningerpolder (14 km²) was completely
   flooded. Water rushed up on the north side of Dordrecht. In Rotterdam a
   record water height was measured. Parts of Rotterdam-Zuid on the island
   of IJsselmonde were also flooded, because the water came over the
   quays. One person, who lived in a cellar and was asleep, drowned there.
   In Stellendam water reached the attics of the houses. On the island of
   Roozenburg the dikes were broken through. Veere stood under water. The
   dikes at Wolphaartsdijk and Ossenisse were breached. The
   Nieuwerkerkpolder and Suzannapolder flooded. At Rammekens breaches were
   knocked in the dike. Reigerspolder and parts of Zuid-Beveland were
   under water. Rilland-Bath was isolated. In Zeeuws-Vlaanderen two dikes
   broke. Stavenisse and Middelburg were under water. The islands of
   Tiengemeten and Ooltgensplaat became completely submerged; on the
   Hoofdplaat the sleeper dike was broken through. In one night, 1,750 km²
   of country changed into a dead plain of water.

The Groenendijk

   After the collapse of numerous seawalls and dikes, the Schielandse Hoge
   Zeedijk dike along the river Hollandse IJssel was all that remained to
   protect three million people in the provinces of South and North
   Holland from the ravaging effects of the advancing storm. For a while,
   the dike stopped the waters from moving into Holland. A section of this
   dike, known as the Groenendijk, was not reinforced with stone. Despite
   the storm, volunteers worked to reinforce this stretch.

   Around 5:30 am on 1 February, the Groenendijk collapsed under the
   immense pressure. The seawater broke through and started moving into
   the South Holland province. In desperation, the mayor of Nieuwerkerk
   commandeered the river ship de Twee Gebroeders (The Two Brothers) and
   ordered the owner to plug the hole in the dike by navigating the ship
   into it. Fearing that the ship may break through and dive into the
   polder, captain Arie Evegroen took a row boat with him. The mayor's
   plan turned out to be successful, as the ship lodged itself firmly into
   the dike, sparing both provinces. If the ship had not been sailed into
   into the dike, the disastrous death toll of 1,835 could have been far
   bigger. This version of events is questioned in a new film by Jos de
   Putter - Verloren Land (Lost Land).

Reaction

   Queen Juliana and Princess Beatrix visited the calamity area. The U.S.
   Army sent helicopters to rescue people from their rooftops. The French
   government sent engineering troops. A large rural aid action came on
   apace, supported by the radio. Purses were opened and there was a large
   amount of international aid. Politically, the disaster prompted
   discussions concerning the protection and strengthening of the dikes,
   eventually leading to the Delta Works, an elaborate project also
   involving the closing off of some sea inlets.

North Sea flood in the United Kingdom

   The North Sea flood of 1953 was one of the most devastating natural
   disasters ever recorded in the UK. Over 1,600 km of coastline was
   damaged, and sea walls were breached, inundating 1,000 km². Flooding
   forced 30,000 people to be evacuated from their homes, and 24,000
   properties were seriously damaged.

   In individual incidents, 38 died at Felixstowe in Suffolk when wooden
   prefabricated homes in the West End area of the town were flooded. In
   Essex, Canvey Island was inundated with the loss of 58 lives and
   another 37 died when the seafront village of Jaywick near Clacton was
   flooded.

   The total death toll on land in the UK is estimated at 307. The total
   death toll at sea for the UK, including the Princess Victoria, is
   estimated at 224.

Response

   In the Netherlands, an ambitious flood defence system was conceived and
   deployed, called the Delta Works (Dutch: Deltawerken), designed to
   protect the estuary of Rhine and Meuse. The works were completed in
   1998, upon completion of the storm surge barrier, Maeslantkering, in
   the Nieuwe waterweg, near Rotterdam.

   In the UK, major investments were made in new sea defences, and the
   Thames Barrier programme was started to secure central London against a
   future storm surge.

The future

   The threat of another flood on the scale of 1953 remains potent, since
   the combination of events generating a massive storm surge could recur
   in normal climatic timescales. In addition, two risk factors could
   increase the likelihood, or the severity, of another incident. Firstly,
   the western part of the Netherlands and the south-eastern part of the
   UK are gradually settling lower as other parts lift higher due to
   isostatic rebound after the disappearance of the glacial sheet from the
   last ice age. Secondly, sea levels are rising as a result of climate
   change, which may also cause more frequent and more severe storms.

   Flood barriers, improved weather forecasting, modern communications and
   sophisticated emergency services may help to reduce the potential loss
   of life from a future flood. However, this must be balanced by the
   impact of higher population densities, intensive building in coastal
   areas and, for the UK, by the decay of coastal defences since the 1950s
   improvements.
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