Thursday, 5 December 2013 - 04:31
Denmark also plagued by storm
As the Netherlands is preparing to endure the storm, the Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI) also issued a code 'orange'. The DMI warns for very strong winds, first from the southwest, later from the northwest with gusts of 35 to 40 m per second, which equals 126 to 144 km per hour.The storm is expected to make landfall Thursday at noon on the west coast and spread over the rest of the country during the afternoon and evening. It should quiet back down in the night going on Friday.
The DMI issued an alert for elevated water levels at the west coast. At high tide Thursday afternoon the water level is expected to rise between 3.5 and 4.0 m above the DVR (Danish Vertical Reference in the Wadden Sea, and between 2.0 and 2.5 m above the DVR at Hvide Sande (White Sands) and Thorsminde.
On January 31st, 1953, the North Sea Flood hit The Netherlands, Belgium, England, and Scotland. A storm tide of the North Sea, brought about by a combination of wind, high tide, and low pressure, caused water levels to rise more than 5.6 meters (18.4ft) above mean sea level. The flood barriers and dykes could not prevent extensive flooding, especially in the southern part of the Netherlands and caused 1836 reported casualties, extensive property damage, and some 30,000 animals drowned.
After the storm demonstrated the brutal force it was capable of, the Netherlands carried out major studies, together with the United Kingdom on strengthening their sea defenses. The Netherlands developed the Delta Works, an extensive system of dams and storm surge barriers, such as the Oosterscheldekering.