A giant, US$500 million yacht reportedly being built for Amazon founder Jeff Bezos faces a delivery problem: It might require dismantling a beloved, historic bridge in Rotterdam that is blocking its passage to the sea.
Reports this week that the Dutch city had already agreed to take apart the recently renovated Koningshaven Bridge, known locally as “De Hef,” sparked public anger.
On Facebook, locals are proposing to pelt the yacht with rotten eggs when it passes along the Mass River.
Photo: AFP
However, a spokeswoman for Rotterdam Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb said on Friday that while a shipbuilder has requested temporarily taking apart the bridge this summer, no permit has yet been sought or granted.
Many Rotterdam residents are still concerned.
“I think it’s easy to understand why it’s so controversial because this is a very beautiful, recently restored old bridge,” Lizette Touber said. “It really is our heritage, and I think that if the rich can pay for it to be opened, which normally nobody else could do, then you get controversy.”
Aboutaleb, who is on an official visit to Colombia, said in a statement that once a request for a permit is submitted, it would be assessed on factors including economic impact, environmental nuisance and possible risks to the “monumental structure” of the bridge.
“When the permit has been applied for, the municipality can make a decision about this, details can be further elaborated and a plan can be made in the event of a positive decision,” the statement said.
The municipality declined to comment on who owns the yacht in question or identify the shipbuilder. An e-mail sent to Amazon seeking comment went unanswered.
A media report in May last year said the yacht was being built for Bezos by Oceanco at a cost of “upwards of US$500 million.”
The current Hef railway bridge was opened for trains to cross the Maas River in 1927, and taken out of service in 1993 when it was replaced by a tunnel.
Public protests spared it from demolition and it eventually underwent a three-year renovation that ended in 2017.
The middle section of the bridge can be raised to allow ships to pass underneath, but apparently not high enough for the new yacht’s masts.
Ton Wesselink, chairman of a Rotterdam historical society, feared that a decision to allow one yacht through the bridge could set a precedent for others.
“The thing we don’t want is that this yacht issue will open the possibility for shipbuilders to use it the same way,” he said.
However, there were voices of support for the proposal.
“I think it’s fine. Let Bezos pay a high price. It creates work. I only see upsides,” Rotterdam resident Ria van den Vousten said. “If it is paid for and everybody makes some money, don’t complain. Don’t talk, but act, as we say in Rotterdam.”
DITCH TACTICS: Kenyan officers were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch suspected to have been deliberately dug by Haitian gang members A Kenyan policeman deployed in Haiti has gone missing after violent gangs attacked a group of officers on a rescue mission, a UN-backed multinational security mission said in a statement yesterday. The Kenyan officers on Tuesday were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch “suspected to have been deliberately dug by gangs,” the statement said, adding that “specialized teams have been deployed” to search for the missing officer. Local media outlets in Haiti reported that the officer had been killed and videos of a lifeless man clothed in Kenyan uniform were shared on social media. Gang violence has left
US Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Denmark of not having done enough to protect Greenland, when he visited the strategically placed and resource-rich Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. Vance made his comment during a trip to the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, a visit viewed by Copenhagen and Nuuk as a provocation. “Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland,” Vance told a news conference. “You have under-invested in the people of Greenland, and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this
A fire caused by a burst gas pipe yesterday spread to several homes and sent a fireball soaring into the sky outside Malaysia’s largest city, injuring more than 100 people. The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for kilometers and lasted for several hours. It happened during a public holiday as Muslims, who are the majority in Malaysia, celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr. National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the
Japan unveiled a plan on Thursday to evacuate around 120,000 residents and tourists from its southern islets near Taiwan within six days in the event of an “emergency”. The plan was put together as “the security situation surrounding our nation grows severe” and with an “emergency” in mind, the government’s crisis management office said. Exactly what that emergency might be was left unspecified in the plan but it envisages the evacuation of around 120,000 people in five Japanese islets close to Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has stepped up military pressure in recent years, including
RSS