The Netherlands dealt with storm Dudley, Eunice, and Franklin in one week, from raging winds to pouring rain. But even the Netherlands has a breaking point when it comes to how much water it can handle.
The Dutch water boards have said that the Dutch water system is too full to handle the excess rainwater, which resulted in flooding around the country, the NOS reports. 😬
Nationwide nuisances
But, not all things are created equal. The severity of the excess rainwater depends on which city you’re in.
Some areas are only experiencing large puddles in the roads and bicycles paths (time to get those rain boots!). Other areas face flooding in homes and in farmland (the boots probably won’t help you here.)
The storm has also caused disruptions in the canals. Falling branches and other debris are causing blockages in the waterways and they cannot drain water properly. The water boards ask residents to report any instances where water is not draining correctly.
Triplet storms
Over the last week, Buienradar became our best friend but the stormy weather was unusual, even for the Netherlands.
Eunice was the strongest storm in the last four years, resulting in the deaths of four people. The storm damaged several homes, vehicles, and businesses.
The Dutch Association of Insurers has estimated storm damages at around €500 million. They expect this number to increases in the coming days, as well as the problems with excess rainwater.
“Out of the ordinary”
Other weather events had similar amounts in damages, from the Noord Brabant hailstorms to the 2018 blizzard in North America. The events of the storm were “out of the ordinary”, director of the Dutch Association of Insurers, Richard Weurding, tells the NOS.
According to the association, it is the most expensive weather event that Dutch insurers have ever faced.
Do you have any stormy weather stories from the past week? Tell us in the comments below!
