Horror accident in Lemmer: Folding bridge raises vehicles-luckily no injuries!

Horror accident in Lemmer: Folding bridge raises vehicles-luckily no injuries!

In the Dutch city of Lemmer, a worrying incident occurred on May 27, 2025, when a folding bridge was lifted unexpectedly during the passage of vehicles. This explosive situation occurred above the Sylroede Canal, where a truck and a car got stuck because the back of the vehicles was raised. Fortunately, a spokesman for Rijkswater State reported that no one was injured in this incident, which is a great relief for the authorities. The responsible bodies immediately initiated an investigation of the incident to clarify the causes.

A video that was recorded during the event shows the frustrated truck driver, who expresses his annoyance loudly about the non-predictable situation. The incident not only raises questions about the safety of bridge and infrastructure, but also illuminates the challenge associated with the maintenance and operation of such constructions.

The challenges of folding bridges

folding bridges are not only an important element of the traffic infrastructure in the Netherlands. A local example in Germany is the Jungfern Bridge in Berlin, which is considered the oldest still preserved bridge in the city. This bridge leads over the copper ditch and is part of the finow channel, which represents the oldest consistently navigable artificial waterway in Germany. In recent years, modernization measures have been launched on the Finow Canal, which enable seamless traffic after a one -year break.

innovative approaches to bridge management

The Bridge SMS system combines hydrology, river construction and industrial administrative systems and aims to minimize the risks for bridges in the face of climate change. These can be endangered by changed water cycles and more frequent floods. According to experts, hydraulic dangers are the most common cause of bridge failure. With an efficient monitoring system, security can be increased and administrative costs can be reduced.

The system includes an innovative toilet inspection method in which tablet-based data collection and IoT systems are used for weather and river monitoring. It also enables access to historical, current and forecast information about bridges. It offers a predictive system that estimates flood outflows and kolk depths up to ten days in advance, and has already been tested in countries such as Ireland, Croatia and Portugal.

The need for such progressive systems is illustrated by incidents such as those in Lemmer. The need to operate bridges safer and more efficiently is acute. Incidents of this kind should serve as an impetus to invest in advanced technologies to ensure the safety of the infrastructure.

In a constantly changing climate image, the protection of bridges is of crucial importance not only for the public, but also for the economy. The clouds partially through technical innovations and improved management techniques could help to avoid similar incidents in the future.