1953 is known for the flood disaster in Zeeland. During the night of January 31 to February 1, dikes broke, in the early morning of February 1. The cause of the flooding is a combination of weather conditions and spring tides, and the weak Dutch dikes. It stormed so hard that night that most people couldn’t even hear the emergency sirens because of the flapping and howling of wind and the pounding of rain. Around 1,800 people died during the water shortage on February 1, 1953. Most died of drowning and hypothermia. It had stormed terribly all night and in the early morning most people were still sleeping. The storm had not yet subsided and it was spring tide. Under the pressure of the high water, the dikes collapsed. The dikes in Zeeland, West Brabant and the South Holland islands could no longer hold back the water and seawater flooded large parts of the areas behind the dikes. The landscape turned into a wetland, and when the storm subsided, villages and towns were wiped off the map. The damage was enormous:
- 1800 dead
- 72,000 homeless
- 200,000 hectares of land were flooded
Flood
The flood was also called the Sint-Ignatius flood or Beatrix flood, but is now commonly known as the 1953 flood disaster. The flood disaster is one of the last major disasters to happen to the Netherlands. The Netherlands is partly below sea level and has a history of fighting against water. After the disaster in 1953, the battle was increasingly won, especially through the construction of the Delta Works. The cause of the 1953 flood was attributed to a combination of storm surge and spring tide. A number of dikes could not cope with these two factors. In the southern funnel-shaped part of the North Sea, the water rose exceptionally, ultimately leading to approximately 1,800 deaths. Because politicians in the Netherlands realized that such a disaster should never be repeated, construction of the Delta Works started shortly after the disaster.
How did the flood disaster come about?
There were signs that a big storm was coming. In the evening of January 31, 1953, a very powerful northwesterly storm arose. Because it was low tide on the southwest coast around midnight, it was known that there would be high tide there early in the morning of February 1. Moreover, the water level at low tide was already as high as was normally the case at high tide. The storm surge service mentioned that a ‘very heavy western storm’ was approaching and that high water was expected between 4 and 6 o’clock in the morning of February 1. Because it was spring tide, the situation became extra dangerous. People warned by radio about ‘dangerous high water.’ In retrospect, this warning was underemphasized. The people the warning reached underestimated the message. Others didn’t even know about a warning.
Oosterschelde and the Grevelingen
At the time, the Oosterschelde and the Grevelingen were so-called open sea inlets. Without dikes and dunes, half of the Netherlands would be constantly under water. The dikes held back a lot of water, but the Netherlands still regularly suffered from flooding. IN 1953, many negative factors came together, which may have made a major flood unavoidable. The dikes of Zeeland, North Brabant and South Holland broke through in various places. The land flooded. the places hit hardest were:
- Ouwerkerk and Nieuwerkerk and Stavenisse (Oosterschelde)
- Oude-Tonge and Nieuwe-Tonge (Grevelingen)
- Schuring and s-Gravendeel (Hollands Diep)
Even on meadows and fields the water rose several meters. People and animals were surprised and drowned within tens of minutes. Those who could reach safety sat on the roofs of houses that had withstood the pressure of the water, or in the tops of trees or on floating wreckage and in hastily reached boats. However, many died of hypothermia. Aid was slow to arrive. And it was winter. Infants and children were an especially vulnerable group of victims. Because there was nothing, no water, no food and no heating, many died because help arrived too late. People were not prepared for such a disaster. In principle, the emergency services did not even know where to start. There were so many deaths and so many people in need. The highest water level was measured at the head of the island of Schouwen-Duiveland. At Bruinisse, the score was determined at an NAP 4.5 meters early on Sunday morning of February 1, 1953. At Goeree-Overflakkee the water flowed over the land with such enormous force that the villages of Oude- and Nieuwe Tonge were flooded by several meters within 30 minutes. People and animals were completely surprised and had virtually no chance. The conditions were very bad anyway, but people could hardly swim in those days. Not everywhere did the water rise so high and so fast. In the village of Ooltgensplaat, near the flooded villages of Oude- and Nieuwe Tonge, the water rose to about 2 meters, and it took longer to reach the highest level. This gave people until 7 a.m. on Sunday morning until the water was two meters high, so they had a little more time to get to safety. However, conditions were also serious there. The highest water level at Duiveland was only measured on Sunday afternoon.
Kill
About 1,800 people died as a result of the flood, recorded and counted in:
- Stavenisse: 150 dead
- Stellendam: 61 deaths
- Fijnaart: 76 deaths
- Duiveland and Overflakkee: 720 deaths
- Oude Tonge: 305 deaths
- New Tonge: 85
- Nieuwerkerk: 288 deaths
- Ouwerkerk: 91
- Ooltgensplaat: 2 deaths
- Den Bommel: 9 deaths
- Bruinisse: 1 dead
- Texel: 6 deaths
- other
The reason why there were so many casualties in some villages and much less in others were caused by various factors. For example, old workers’ houses that were toppled by the water, the quality of the dikes in the area, the approach of the local government, height differences of the incoming water…
Other areas in the Netherlands
Floods were experienced in many more areas in the Netherlands. Dordrecht and Rotterdam suffered from flooding and flooding, and the dikes also broke at Rozenburg. Places that suffered from serious flooding, sometimes up to several meters high, included Stellendam, Veere, Ossenisse, Wolphaartsdijk, Nieuwerkerkpolder and Suzannapolder, Rammakens, Reigerspolder, and some parts of Zuid-Beveland were flooded.
Die or be saved
A sad side effect was that approximately 50% of the victims initially survived the disaster, but still died during the Sunday and Monday after the disaster. It was still storming on Sunday afternoon and the tide remained high. People still fell into the water or died of hypothermia, whether in the water or not. Houses that had initially withstood the storm still collapsed on Sunday and Monday, and this also caused people to lose their lives. It was not until Monday that emergency services were properly organized and numb, grieving and terrified people could be rescued.
Why did Schielands Hoge Zeedijk near Nieuwekerk aan den IJssel not break through?
Schielands Hoge Zeedijk near Nieuwekerk did not break through, thanks to adequate action by a skipper. Arie Groen was a skipper who lived in Oudekerk. When the dike seemed to collapse, Mayor Jaap Vogelaar asked or the skipper to place his ship called ‘Twee Gebroeders’ in front of the hole in the dike. In 1682 and 1717, skippers with ships could also have prevented the dike in South Holland from collapsing in the same way. Arie Groen’s ship ‘De Twee Gebroeders’ was 18 meters long and it is believed that the skipper saved many lives with his action.
Belgium
People were also aware of the storm and tide along other coasts.
- Belgium: 37 dikes broke through. Ostend was completely flooded and Antwerp also had to deal with flooding
- Great Britain: Floods, causing 30,000 people to be evacuated
- Northwest Germany: flooding
Radio
In 1953, people had limited means to reach and warn each other. There was radio and the radio broadcast continuously. Many people were of course unable to receive radio due to the circumstances in which they found themselves. Radio amateurs also helped to send messages to speed up relief efforts.
Help from home and abroad
Aid from abroad also started. People sent clothes and food. Families were offered shelter and care in Dutch dry areas. Money was also raised to give people a new start. In times of need one always learns to recognize the good in people.
Delta Works
After the flood disaster in 1953, construction of the Delta Works began. The dikes were strengthened and raised everywhere. The Netherlands is now better protected than ever against flooding. Yet our country remains vulnerable to flooding, because part of the Netherlands is 7 meters below sea level. So nothing can go wrong.