Strong wind knocks down trees, causing Rotterdam metro & Amsterdam train problems

The expected strong gusts of wind were observed in the west and southwest of the Netherlands on Monday afternoon, felling trees and causing problems during the evening rush hour. Trees were ripped from the ground and toppled over in various locations, leading to a metro crash in Rotterdam, a train shutdown in Amsterdam, and problems on the railroad between Gorinchem and Leerdam.

The strongest gust was recorded on the Oosterscheldekering at a speed of 102 kilometers per hour, Weeronline reported. Above land, wind gusts of 94 kilometers per hour occurred in Hoek van Holland and Vlissingen. A Code Yellow weather warning was in effect on Monday afternoon in Noord-Holland, Zuid-Holland, Noord-Brabant and Zeeland, which was concluded by 6 p.m.

In Rotterdam, at least one metro crashed into a downed tree, a spokeswoman for transport company RET confirmed after reporting by the regional broadcaster, Rijnmond. There were no injuries, but metro traffic between Rotterdam-Slinge and Rhoon was blocked. Shuttle buses were being deployed.

Due to a fallen tree, no trains were running between the Amsterdam Centraal and Duivendrecht stations, said railroad management firm ProRail. The tree crashed down on the overhead wires, according to ProRail. "It is turbulent and we are also noticing that on the tracks."

A train was also stranded due to the fallen tree. ProRail said that an "evacuation plan" was being developed for the passengers stuck on that train.

The travel planner from national railway NS showed that the disruption was expected to last until 10:45 p.m. The NS advised people to take the metro between the Amsterdam Centraal, Amstel, Bijlmer ArenA and Duivendrecht stations.

A tree also fell on the overhead wires on the route between Gorinchem and Leerdam, meaning that train traffic was not possible there, ProRail said. In addition, the NS stated that fewer Intercity trains were running between the central stations in Utrecht and Eindhoven due to a defective overhead line. That was also expected to last until 10:45 p.m.

Reports of damage from fallen trees were still emerging from various places on Monday afternoon. Despite the strong wind, it was not consistent enough over land to be classified as an official storm. This requires an average wind speed of 76 kilometers per hour or more for a duration of one hour at one weather station operated by meteorological service KNMI.

On Monday, it briefly reached wind force 9 at Hoek van Holland, but not long enough, according to Weeronline. Wind force 9 is equivalent to between 76 and 87 kilometers per hour.

Due to the strong wind, an overtaking ban was in force on the Markerwaarddijk stretch of the N307 highway between Lelystad and Enkhuizen at the beginning of the evening. Traffic on the dike, also known as the Houtribdijk, also had to adhere to a maximum speed of 70 kilometers per hour. The measures were withdrawn after about two hours.

The wind was expected to further decrease from the southwest on Monday evening.