Dyke guards with Deltares DNA
By day, they model high-water waves and analyse failure mechanisms. But when it matters most, they’re out there in their boots, standing in the mud. Four Deltares colleagues consciously choose to volunteer as dyke wardens or incident leads, safeguarding the very dykes behind which they live. It says something about who we are: professionals with deep expertise, who take responsibility and feel truly connected to the world around them.
For Ellen Tromp, Gerben Boot, Klaas-Jan van Heeringen and Marcel Taal, flood protection is anything but abstract: they know the dykes not only from their computer screens, but also from stormy nights when a crack, a beaver passage or changing wave action has immediate significance. For them, water safety is not just something you calculate, but also something you can monitor yourself.
A natural sense of responsibility
For Klaas-Jan, the work of a dyke guard began with an ‘almost instinctive sense of responsibility’. He lives close to the Rotte and works daily with water authorities on warning systems and water management. “I wanted to see up close what the water authorities were working on; I had a strong feeling that this was part of who I am.” Ten years ago, he signed up with the Schieland en de Krimpenerwaard Water Authority.
In situations like this, I don’t want to be on the sidelines.
Klaas-Jan van Heeringen
He mainly carried out dry weather inspections. “Straightforward, yet important. You walk the length of your own section of dyke, about a kilometre and a half. If you spot a crack or a hole, often caused by drought or excavation, you report it.”
Klaas-Jan has never experienced any major disasters, but one experience during a project at Deltares still stands out clearly in his mind: the impending dyke breach at Woltersum in 2012. “That’s when I felt: this is why I do this. In situations like this, I don’t want to be on the sidelines.”
Contributing to a safe environment
Ellen started out as a trainer for volunteer dyke guards almost twenty years ago. After moving to the Hollandse Delta Water Authority area, it was a natural step for her to become a dyke guard herself. She is now the dyke post leader at the Albrandswaard dyke post. “I live in a village that was badly affected by the 1953 North Sea Flood. That plays a part. It allows me to contribute to the safety of my immediate surroundings.”
A shift always begins for her at the dyke post: gathering equipment, checking walkie talkies, and receiving a briefing on the situation. “In our area, you look out for cracks, water seeping out, and deformations – sometimes in wind force seven conditions. Challenging? Yes. But also motivating.”
Elllen experienced the first callout of a storm season firsthand: the automatic closure of the Maeslant barrier around Christmas 2023.
My team was on standby. At that moment, you feel: that’s what we do it for. That’s why we train, that’s why we practise: to keep everyone’s feet dry.
Ellen Tromp
Something bigger than yourself
Gerben knows water safety inside out, down to the millimetre: he works on software and data analyses for flood forecasts. As a dyke guard and dyke post leader at the Hollandse Delta Water Authority, he experiences what happens when things get really tense.
He talks about the drills with a laugh: in the dark, with walkie-talkies, rain-soaked maps, the torch as the only steady source of light, and the ‘ball tube’: a tool for those who must cross barbed wire. “Not charming, but safe.”
Amidst all the jokes, you can sense his seriousness. “You only realise just how vast the whole water safety chain is when you’re right in the middle of it. Everything you report goes straight to the dyke post and from there to the Water Authority Action Team. You’re just a small link in the chain, but an important one.”
During Storm Pia in December 2023, Gerben was ready to be deployed. “Bag packed, boots on. In the end, the alert was downgraded, but that feeling of readiness lingers for a while.” For Gerben, it’s the combination of practical work, responsibility and teamwork that makes volunteering meaningful. “Volunteering is putting your energy into something bigger than yourself.”
Real learning through doing
Marcel is a brand-new dyke guard. He completed the course, took part in the practical session, received his certificate and his badge, but his first real stormy night is yet to come. “You only really learn by doing it,” he says. Marcel knows the theory of identifying weak spots, interpreting cracks and reporting issues, but he knows it feels different when the rain seems to be falling horizontally and the wind is tugging at your hood.
My work is about coastal and mudflat systems and natural processes. Being a dyke guard is completely different: very direct, human, acute.
Marcel Taal
During the training, Marcel learnt to look at dykes with a different eye: a dog’s den or a fox’s burrow can be a weak spot, hairline cracks in the tarmac can mean something, and how important it is to be alert. His motivation is clear: doing something for society, and “gaining an extra layer of understanding in my field of work”. “My work is about coastal and mudflat systems and natural processes. Being a dyke guard is completely different: very direct, human, acute.”
Practical experience enriches
What these four Deltares colleagues share is that their commitment to dyke safety doesn’t end after the working day. This voluntary work enriches their profession, because the experiences on the dykes constantly reinforce why they do their work at Deltares.
Would they recommend colleagues to sign up as volunteer dyke guards? All four answer “yes” without hesitation. Gerben emphasises how it broadens your perspective and how much you learn from it; Ellen points out the valuable feeling of contributing to the safety of your own environment and meeting people with the same drive. For Marcel, it’s a way to broaden his horizons and contribute to safety, knowing just how fragile it can be. Klaas-Jan says enthusiastically, “Go for it”!
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