Investigation into how Dutch highways flooded; Most issues resolved

Rijkswaterstaat is investigating how it was possible that so much water remained on the A1 and A35 motorways in Enschede and Hengelo on Sunday night. According to a spokesperson, the situation was peculiar. "A special amount of precipitation fell, but I cannot yet say anything about the exact cause of the amount of water on the highways."

Twente was struck by heavy rainfall on Sunday night. The motorways were closed off in both directions because there was a lot of water on the road. A still unknown number of road users were stranded because of this. The spokesperson said people were climbing on their cars to avoid the highly rising water.

A flooded adjacent road may have caused the nuisance, but Rijkswaterstaat is now investigating whether that was the only reason. Contractors have drained the water since the incident, the spokesman said.

The roads were accessible for traffic again on Monday morning. Only the entrance and exit of the provincial road N735 at De Lutte, which connects to the A1, is still closed.

In addition to the motorways, streets, tunnels, homes, and parking garages were also flooded in Enschede, Losser, and Oldenzaal.

Although most of the water troubles in Twente are over, the fire brigade received calls on Monday. "The water is still quite high, so we are still receiving some calls," said a spokesperson.

"We are increasingly confronted with extreme weather. We are also preparing for that. But we have not seen this much water at many times," the spokesperson said.

The fire brigade has mainly been focused on removing the acute danger, and the spokesperson said that "cleaning up and emptying cellars is up to the people themselves."

The weather also caused damage to the train tracks with a subsidence. A spokesperson for ProRail said on Monday that the damage is "quite big" and that an engineering firm and a contractor are currently investigating how and when it can be repaired.

Due to the subsidence, there have been fewer trains between Sittard and Maastricht for the last day. Images show that a hole has appeared in the subsurface between the rails and the fences next to the track near Lutterade in Geleen. There are also rocks next to the track, the so-called ballast has shifted, and a bicycle tunnel was flooded.

Trains can drive on one of the two tracks, but they are going slower than normal. Express buses have been set up to replace the problems on the track.

The ProRail spokeswoman said the tracks must be "out of service" when the repair work starts. This means that during these works, no train traffic will be possible between Sittard and Maastricht. As a rule, ProRail tries to plan such work at night where possible.