The Westhoek area in the west of West Flanders has been spared from further flooding. Additional rain had been forecast and the emergency services had been on high alert amid fears that the flooding of the past few days would worsen. However, speaking on Friday morning Kristof Louagie of the Westhoek Fire Service told VRT News that the number of call outs to deal with flood-related issues has remained limited for the time being.
“It only started to rain again early this morning. So we will continue to closely monitor the water levels.” The Provincial Disaster Plan came into force across West Flanders on Thursday. The heavy rain of recent days has resulted in considerable flooding in Poperinge, Lo-Reninge and Alveringem and other areas in the west of the province. With more rain expected, a Code Red weather warning was issued. There were fears that the rain could cause the rivers IJzer and Leie to burst their banks.
“According to figures from our command post, during last night, the number of additional call-outs remained limited.
Slight rise in water levels
Over the past 24 hours, 5 to 25 mm of precipitation fell across Flanders. Today (Friday) and additional 10 to 25 or even 30 mm could fall in West Flanders. By the early evening the weather will become drier in West Flanders, with just some localised showers. No further significant rainfall is expected until Sunday evening. Nevertheless, the Fire Service remains on the alert.
We are seeing slight increases in water levels again at certain points, but these do not come close to the large rise we saw last Monday. Nevertheless, we are doing everything to ensure that we are ready to intervene if this proves necessary”.
Residents in the affected areas are advised to be prepared. “Place all your valuables on an upper floor, and make sure you have an emergency kit ready with charged batteries for your phone or tablet”, Mr Louagie said.