HOLWERT - Mice, rats, and hares have fled en masse in the Netherlands due to high water in the Wadden Sea. Many of the animals did not survive.

Storm Amy has caused the water in the Wadden Sea to rise significantly. Quays have been flooded in several places. In Holwert, in the north of the Netherlands, a ferry causeway has been closed. The water is flooding cycle paths, roads, and parking lots. The closure also makes the Wadden Island of Ameland inaccessible.

The salt marshes, areas outside the dikes, are also flooded. This vast nature reserve, approximately 17 kilometers long and up to over 2 kilometers wide, is home to a wide variety of animal species. The animals that live there have fled en masse to higher, drier areas. This morning, hundreds of rats, mice, and hares were found on the dike near Holwert, many of them wet and severely weakened. However, most of the animals did not survive and drowned. It's unknown how many animals perished, but the number is expected to be in the tens to hundreds of thousands.

The water is now slowly receding. The roads are being cleared and reopened.