Search for two missing people in Maas river near Venlo

Emergency services have been searching for two possible drowning people in the Maas River near Venlo since Sunday morning. According to bystanders, the two jumped into the water at the Maas River in Limburg city and disappeared.

Een speciaal team dat gespecialiseerd is in zoeken in water is op dit moment aangekomen in #Venlo en gaat op zoek naar de twee personen die vanmorgen te water zijn geraakt. Meteen na de melding werd al gezocht door duikteams van de brandweer. pic.twitter.com/54Ci8fCqLn

— Politie Eenheid Limburg (@POL_Limburg) June 2, 2024

After the report, around 6:45 a.m., the fire brigade and police started a major search operation. The fire brigade stopped at 9:15 a.m., but a specialist police team continued to search with a sonar boat. The police have also deployed a helicopter that searches the long river with a thermal camera. In addition, a national search team arrived around 10 a.m. with special equipment to detect the missing people, Omroep Venlo reported.

According to officials, three people jumped into the water early Sunday morning. One managed to reach the shore, but the other two have been missing since then. "Two diving teams from the fire brigade immediately took action," said a police spokeswoman. "They stopped after a few hours because they couldn't find anything. The police then took over the search."

The Maas River is searched over a relatively long distance, from the Maaskade in Venlo to the A67 bridge near Velden. According to the spokesperson, this is due to the fast current caused by the heavy rainfall in recent weeks. This current can carry drowning victims over a long distance. "The search can take some time," she said.

It is still unclear why the three people jumped into the water.