Rhine River reaches fourth high water peak

The Rhine River has reached its highest level on Sunday, January 7, as it saw its fourth high water peak since November of last year. 

It is extremely rare that such high water levels of the river are observed in this relatively short period of time. However, the large amounts of rainfall have contributed to this, as well as the flooding across the nation.  

As a result of this, the flooding along the major rivers will continue into the following week, partly because the soil is so saturated by the rain that it now can no longer absorb any more water. 

Various water boards in the Netherlands, alongside the authorities and Rijkswaterstaat will continue to closely monitor the situation, especially for damage that could make the now soaking wet dikes unstable. 

To process the volume of water, Rijkswaterstaat put the large weirs on the Lower Rhine near Driel and the Lek near Amerongen to use. The Ravenswaaij barrier is now closed to shipping traffic, alongside the Princess Marijke locks in the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal near Tiel. 

The high water has also resulted in the closing of the quays and some streets in Nijmegen, Tiel and Arnhem. Herd managers, being warned of the coming weather, have already moved their cattle onto dry land. Sandbags have been placed around doors in residential areas, including Leerdam, Utrecht, to prevent flooding from overflowing rivers.