No trains will be running tomorrow morning, rail manager ProRail reports. The damage on the track from storm Eunice is too great. In many places in the country fallen trees are lying on the track or the overhead wires are damaged.
ProRail has started with ‘inspection rides’: these are rides without passengers to check whether there are any roadblocks or damage to the track. It is not clear when the trains will be able to run safely again.
In many places trees and branches have fallen on the track, and in two places even parts of a roof and a bicycle shed. ProRail, responsible for the track, is already making so-called inspection trips to assess the damage.
And that is not easy, says a spokesperson. “The damage is really great. Everywhere we inspect there are trees on the track, at least at ten locations, and we haven’t seen everything yet, because the inspection trains will only drive on a route if it is safe.”
Removing the trees takes time. “You can simply remove branches, but trees have to be cut into pieces. That is quite a job.”
A tree has fallen on the overhead lines between Middelburg and Vlissingen, which means that repair work is also required. The NS recommends that you consult the journey planner shortly before departure for the latest information, and ProRail provides updates about the work in a blog .
Overturned trucks
Also on the road tomorrow not everything will be back to normal. In several places, trucks have overturned and trees, branches or other objects lie on the highways. “A lot of trucks have overturned, especially in the coastal provinces,” says a spokesperson for Rijkswaterstaat.
“But we also receive reports from the east of the country. We are working with all our might to get those cars away, but the safety of the salvors comes first. And whether there is damage to the road can often only be seen when the trucks are gone, and then it also has to be repaired.”
All in all, it may well be that Rijkswaterstaat will be busy cleaning up and repairing for part of the day tomorrow. “We are working on it with all our might, but it is not certain whether we will get everything away.” Rijkswaterstaat advises people who want to hit the road to check the traffic information in advance. For local roads, people should keep an eye on their municipality’s websites and twitter posts. Up-to -date information can also be found at the ANWB .
Flights cancelled
At Schiphol, about 420 of the 1000 flights have been canceled today. As long as the wind comes from a westerly direction, fewer jobs are available. There will also be less capacity tomorrow and the coming days, but the airport does not yet have a good idea of what that means for passengers, a spokesperson said.
It is not yet clear when the ferry services to the Wadden Islands will resume. Shipping company TESO, which provides the connection with Texel, hopes to be able to set sail again tonight, but that is not certain. Tomorrow morning the ferries will certainly sail to and from the island again. Current information can be found on the websites of the various ferry services.
stormy weather
Although Eunice is leaving, the weather will not be calm tomorrow. “It remains fairly turbulent”, weatherman Marco Verhoef expects. It can still blow strongly along the coast with wind force 7 to 8. “We will no longer have the very strong gusts of wind today, but tomorrow it will still be strong.” Especially on the coast it will remain stormy until tomorrow evening and it will also remain unsettled.
