The Hefbrug: A Bridge too Low. A Bridge too Far
The iconic ”Hef Bridge” (“De Hef”) in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, survived the vicious Nazi bombing that obliterated the center of the city in May 1940. Today, it is at the center of a controversy surrounding the passage through that bridge – on its way to open sea – of a $500 million super yacht being completed for the world’s richest man, Jeff Bezos.
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The historic Dutch bridge, de Hefbrug, has been much in the news recently.
First, some background.
The Nazi Invasion of the Netherlands
On May 10,1940, Germany invaded the Netherlands.
One of the immediate objectives was the capture of the strategically and commercially important port city of Rotterdam. The city straddles both side of the Nieuw Maas which in those days were connected by two bridges, the Willemsbrug (William Bridge) and the Koningshavenbrug or the Hefbrug and affectionately as De Hef.
The Willemsbrug was a vehicular, bike and pedestrian traffic bridge while the Hefbrug was a railway bridge.
Hitler had intended to capture the Netherlands in one or two days, However, the German Army met fierce resistance as they approached Rotterdam, especially on and around the bridges.
On May 14, the Nazis gave the Dutch an ultimatum: If resistance did not cease the Germans would destroy Rotterdam.
As a result of an unfortunate sequence of miscommunications and misunderstandings surrounding the ultimatum, on May 14, German bombers – in two attacks — conducted what has been called the “Rotterdam Blitz” or simply het Bombardment which almost obliterated the historic center of the city, killed nearly 1,000 people and destroyed 25,000 homes, rendering 85,000 people homeless.
The following day, after another ultimatum by Hitler that a similar fate awaited Utrecht and other Dutch cities, the Netherlands capitulated to the Germans.
The Bridges over the Niuew Maas
During the skirmishes and battles to defend the bridges and to deny the Germans access to them, 185 Dutch soldiers gave their lives. The Dutch attempted to destroy the two bridges to halt or slow the German advance, but those attempts failed.
The Willemsbrug, named after King Willem III of the Netherlands, was opened in 1879 and was eventually replaced by the new Willemsbrug built 500 feet upstream. After the completion of the new Willemsbrug in 1981 the old one was demolished.
The Hefbrug was damaged during the invasion and was one of the first structures to be rebuilt after the war.
Today, Rotterdam is a vibrant city boasting of several magnificent bridges and tunnels over and under the Maas, but the Hefbrug remains an important part of Rotterdam’s heritage and has a special place in the hearts of Rotterdammers.
History of De Hef
Built in 1927 as a vertical-lift bridge (Its 617-ton horizontal span— 180 feet long and 30 feet wide — can be raised to a height of more than 130 feet above the river), over the busy Koningshaven channel, the iconic Hefbrug is today a national monument and heritage site and has a colorful history, in addition to the role it played during the German invasion.
The history of the Hefbrug goes back even farther than 1927. Its predecessor was a draaibrug (swing bridge) built in 1878.
After several shipping accidents within the narrow passageway, however, it was time for innovative ideas.
Designed by engineer Pieter Joosting, the Hefbrug (vertical-lift bridge), the first of its kind in Europe, was built and replaced the swing bridge in 1927.
The center part of the bridge (het val) is normally connected to its two fixed “approach sections” on the riverbanks to permit train traffic to cross the river. It can be raised to a height of 131 feet above river level to allow ship traffic to sail underneath.
In May 1978, a brand-new ship, the Nedlloyd Bahrein, ran into the Hefbrug and damaged the lift section badly enough that it had to be removed for repairs. Train traffic was interrupted for about two weeks. (This complex and expensive “remove and reinsert” operation may have to be replicated in the near future).
The bridge has also been used by “bridge divers.” In 1933 two daredevils dove from the elevated bridge: One survived, making a record-breaking dive, the other did not.
The bridge was decommissioned in 1993.
In 2014, the center section was once again removed and the entire bridge structure renovated in a project that lasted over two years and was paid for by the City of Rotterdam. It is reported that after the renovation, the City of Rotterdam promised never to dismantle the bridge again.
When, during daylong farewell ceremonies, the last train crossed the Hefbrug blowing its whistle one last time, “some spectators wiped away a tear because, after 116 years, no more trains would cross over the Maas, but rather under it”
Jeff Bezos’ Mega Yacht
It is thus no wonder that the Rotterdam residents have “mixed feelings” about plans to once again dismantle the historic bridge to allow for the passage of a new $500 million super yacht (at 417 feet long, reportedly the largest sailing yacht in the world) presently being completed at the Oceanco ship yard in Alblasserdam, “upriver” from the Hefbrug. The yacht happens to belong to the world’s richest man, Jeff Bezos.
The problem is that passage through the Hefbrug is the only way to reach open sea and Bezos’ sail-assisted, three-mast yacht, reaching more than 130 feet into the sky, is taller than the vertical clearance of the fully raised bridge. Thus, the Rotterdam municipality will have to remove the center section of De Hef so the ship can pass, and then put it back together again.
Although it is reported that the yacht builder and Bezos will foot the costs to remove and replace the lift section, the plans have given rise to a melee of emotions – including anger and disappointment — within the Rotterdam community along with pragmatic considerations such as the economic importance of the shipbuilding industry in the region.
Some of the Reactions
Reactions from Rotterdam officials and ordinary citizens run the gamut.
The president of the Rotterdam Historical Society, Tom Wessenlink says:
We don’t have many historic buildings in Rotterdam. Many monuments were lost during the war, and we like this bridge very much. It has been restored a few years ago and the promise was made not to touch it, so it is not understandable that now, just because a ship wants to pass, we have to dismantle it.
The mayor of Rotterdam, Ahmed Aboutaleb, is taking a more “wait and see” attitude and is considering the economic and employment impact on the shipbuilding industry and whether the center section can be removed without damage. The mayor also wants to be sure that Bezos will indeed reimburse the city for the costs.
The fact that Bezos is one of the richest people on earth “has absolutely nothing to do with this decision,” Aboutaleb says.
Others are a little blunter.
Stephan Leewis, a Rotterdam politician, writes, “This man has earned his money by structurally squeezing staff, avoiding taxes, avoiding regulations and now we have to tear down and rebuild our beautiful national monument?” He calls it “a bridge too far.”
Then there is Rotterdammer Pablo Strörmann who plans to host a party by the Hef Bridge and is inviting people to pelt the yacht with (rotten) eggs as it passes through De Hef.
The event description on Facebook reads in part: “Rotterdam was built from the rubble by the people of Rotterdam, and we don’t just take that apart for the phallic symbol of a megalomaniac billionaire. Not without a fight!”
CODA:
The author lived and was educated in Rotterdam shortly (nine years) after the end of World War II and still remembers the resilience and perseverance of the Rotterdam people in rebuilding their city after its heart and soul were torn out by the Nazi bombardment, as hauntingly symbolized by Ossip Zadkine’s iconic sculpture De Verwoeste Stad (the Destroyed City) in Rotterdam’s center. (Below)
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