Westhoek drains an unprecedented amount of water to the sea, “But tomorrow, in the worst case, up to 30 liters of rain per square meter will fall” (Ypres)

An unprecedented amount of water was drained from the Westhoek to the sea on Monday. “Such flow rates have never been achieved before,” is stated in the provincial general emergency and intervention plan, which distributed a state of affairs on Monday evening. More rain is expected for Tuesday.

“Thanks to the combination of all the measures taken by the various water managers, very large masses of water were drained towards the sea on Monday,” it said. “Such flow rates have never been achieved before. The discharge on the side channels was even as great as from the IJzer. Depending on the location, the water level generally drops slowly. In a number of places stagnation or even a slight increase was observed. The water managers assume that in the coming days we will no longer see the level peaks we have had in recent days.”

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“The pumps used make a real difference, not only in terms of water discharge, but also because it makes it possible to discharge 24 hours a day instead of having to depend on the tides. Pumps are still being added and that will continue to be the case tomorrow.”

One hundred tons of sandbags

The weather forecasts are not unanimously positive. “After a drier period at night, a number of heavy showers are expected on Tuesday morning. Current weather models do not agree on the expected precipitation amounts, but according to the most pessimistic model, up to thirty liters per square meter could fall. In combination with the possible effects of the predicted strong wind on the water surfaces, this will be a situation that will be closely monitored.”

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Defense has been called in for the sandbags since Monday. “The stock of sandbags was continued to be maintained. One hundred tons are processed into sandbags during the night from Monday to Tuesday. The situation on the ground will continue to be monitored in the coming hours and days. We now have to wait and see what tomorrow will bring in terms of rain and wind and what the impact will be locally.”