Water level in Dutch province highest since 1953 flood

A combination of spring tide and a northwesterly storm has raised the water in Dutch coast province Zeeland to the highest level since the devastating 1953 North Sea flood, local media reported Friday. The force 9 storm entered the Netherlands on Thursday afternoon from the Northern Wadden Islands. Weather alarm code red was issued around the provinces of North-Holland, Friesland, Groningen, the Wadden Sea and the IJsselmeer. The water level near the southwestern harbor city of Vlissingen reached 3.99 meters above sea level at 4 a.m. on Friday, while the Oosterschelde storm defense in Zeeland, one of the construction projects created after the flood, was closed on Thursday for the first time in six years. So far, no dangerous situations or severe damage is apparent, although some dunes along the coast have been affected and the fire department took over 4,000 calls on storm damage. Traffic has been affected and train travel in the north has been shut down. On Thursday, Schiphol Airport canceled 50 scheduled flights to Europe due to the storm. Zeeland consists of a number of islands with large parts below sea level. On Feb. 1, 1953, the water level in Zeeland rose to 4.55 meters above sea level. Large areas in the Netherlands were flooded and 1,836 people were killed, with the majority of fatalities in Zeeland. On Friday, the northern parts of the Netherlands are expected to still suffer from the storm, but the wind will not be as strong. The water level is also expected to drop.