Φωτογραφίες

The Oosterschelde storm surge barrier is part of the Deltaworks protecting the south-western part of the Netherlands from flooding in case of a severe storm.

Reason to start building the Deltaworks was the north-western storm of 1 February 1953. During that night sea levels got very high due to the combination of the storm and springtide. The water reached a level of 4,55m above NAP (Normal Amsterdam Water Level). Many dikes, already in bad condition, couldn’t withstand the water and broke. That night 1835 people died mainly in the provinces of Zeeland, Noord-Brabant and Zuid-Holland. Shortly after planning for the Deltaworks began.

Before building the Oosterschelde storm surge barrier caused many discussions. Should there be a dam or should the tidal system remain and the dikes heightened? The decision was to build a dam, with the tidal system remaining due to the important environment of the Oosterschelde.
The constructed dam consists of moving elements which will be lowered in case of an expected water level above a certain level.
On the island of Neeltje Jans there is an information center about the Deltaworks. You can also go to www.deltawerken.com

I took the original photo in 1994. This one is scanned from positive slide and cropped. Other pp was slight lightning of the shadows and darkening of the highlights.