Fire brigade begins pumping out water from flooded Volendam neighborhoods

The fire department was busy placing sandbags and pumping out water from the flooded areas of Volendam on Sunday. Sandbags have been placed at the well-known Hotel Spaander at the harbor, according to the municipality of Edam-Volendam. Water has also been pumped out of the basement of the hotel.

Areas outside the dikes in Volendam, and also in nearby Monnickendam, have suffered from flooding because of the very high water level of the Markermeer. The lake reached its highest water level on Sunday morning.

Strong winds caused water to flow over a dike in the Slobbeland area in Volendam on Sunday morning, the municipality said. The fire brigade is also assisting with pumps there. At the municipality's request, the Hollands Noorderkwartier Water Board installed an emergency pump in the area on Sunday with a hundred-meter-long pipe attached to it to drain water. The inland port of Monnickendam was also closed, according to the municipality of Waterland.

According to a spokesperson for the water authority, more areas outside the dykes along the Markermeer are experiencing flooding, but so far there have only been minor issues. The dike in Durgerdam is holding up well. It was also elevated with large sandbags. The streets in Hoorn also remained virtually dry. They were protected against the water with normal and extra large sandbags.

It is not yet possible to say when the high water problems along the Markermeer will be over. Rijkswaterstaat was again able to discharge water from the Markermeer into the IJsselmeer to the north, but it is unclear how long this can continue. A high-water surge is coming from the IJssel River, which will eventually end up in the IJsselmeer.

If the level of the IJsselmeer rises again, discharging water from the Markermeer will have to stop. Rijkswaterstaat guards will continue to inspect the dike on Marken until at least Monday evening due to the high water level. The situation of a test section along that dike, which has filled with water, is stable, according to the water authority.