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Some parts of the country ravaged by Hurricane Florence will slowly dry out and begin to clean up in the coming weeks. Two years ago, many Carolinas communities had not yet recovered from Hurricane Matthew. The incessant cycle of disaster, reconstruction and repetition has left many residents feeling numb and helpless. And climatologists say we can expect more frequent and more powerful storms in the future.
We have heard that the Netherlands, one of the most flood-prone places in the world, almost never floods. Holland is about twice the size of New Jersey and is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. Much is below sea level, but the Dutch do not care about flood insurance. They do not need it While the United States cleans up hurricane Florence, we wondered if the Dutch had a solution.
"Storms may be caused by humans and you can debate them, but disasters because of storms? They are human-caused."
It was a disaster that took place in slow motion. Hurricane Florence crawled for four days on the East Coast, spilling record rainfall – more than 35 inches in North Carolina – flooding thousands of homes and causing dozens of deaths.
The destruction caused by hurricanes Katrina, Sandy, Harvey and Maria cost hundreds of billions of dollars. Florence is another chapter of a story that we know too well.
We met a Dutchman – Henk Ovink – who says it's time to completely rewrite the American disaster book.
Henk Ovink, the only water ambassador in the world, says the amount of damage caused by hurricanes can be reduced through improved stormwater management
CBS News
Henk Ovink: There is only one opportunity. That's when a disaster strikes. It's like an x-ray. It tells you where all your vulnerabilities lie and gives you the opportunity to say, "We can do better."
Ovink is the only water ambassador in the world, a role entrusted to him by the Dutch government.
He advises the United States, 35 countries and a dozen American cities. He travels around the world as a missionary preaching the gospel of flood prevention. One of his last stops was Houston, still recovering from Hurricane Harvey.
Bill Whitaker: So what's the biggest challenge in the US?
Henk Ovink: You are solution oriented. You have a collective. When things happen, you meet. You want to rebuild and repair and be ready when disastrous things happen. But we do not really believe that we can actually prevent a disaster from happening.
Bill Whitaker: But how are you going to prevent a disaster like Katrina, Harvey, Sandy? It does not seem possible.
Henk Ovink: We can not stop them from happening. But the impact of these disasters can be reduced by preparing us. I think the catastrophes we see in the world are all caused by man. Storms may be caused by humans and you can discuss them. But disasters because of storms? Uh. These are made by the man.
It's a radical statement. We went with him to the Netherlands to learn what shaped his thinking: it is water. Water is everywhere in this country known for its charming canals, picturesque dikes and windmills. But these are not just picturesque tourist attractions. For centuries, canals and dikes have retained water, windmills pump it. Ovink took us by helicopter so we could see him from above.
Bill Whitaker: From what I can see here, it seems that the whole country is built by the man.
Henk Ovink: Yes
We flew over Rotterdam, his hometown, to show us how the country was designed.
Bill Whitaker: How much of this city is below sea level?
Henk Ovink: Almost everything.
Bill Whitaker: When was the last time it flooded?
Henk Ovink: That does not flood. And US–
Bill Whitaker: Because of the precautions you have taken.
Henk Ovink: Yeah.
The Dutch allocate more than $ 1 billion a year to manage their flood infrastructure. Some are massive, like the storm dam Maeslantkering.
The storm dam Maeslantkering
Bill Whitaker: Oh, those are the doors.
Henk Ovink: They are fat.
Bill Whitaker: They are huge.
Henk Ovink: It's like an Eiffel Tower, like the Eiffel Tower in Paris, on its sides. But then two.
Bill Whitaker: Each of the size of–
Henk Ovink: Everyone
Bill Whitaker: – Eiffel Tower.
The gates protect one of the largest ports in the world and the majority of the Dutch population. They do not have hurricanes like us, but fierce storms with hurricane winds can blow from the North Sea and cause huge storm surges. When this happens, both weapons sink on the Rhine and Rotterdam. It took six years to build the doors and it cost $ 500 million.
Bill Whitaker: It's a big investment for something you've only had to use once or twice since its inception.
Henk Ovink: $ 150 billion was lost in New Orleans. I do not think I need to say more. How many people were killed? Sandy, another storm, $ 70 billion. We do not have this damage.
But they did it in the past.
Bill Whitaker: Your moment Katrina was in …
Henk Ovink: & # 39; 53.
Bill Whitaker: 1953?
Henk Ovink: Yes, & # 39; 53 was our true awakening. A storm blowing from the North Sea from the west.
Bill Whitaker: What happened?
Henk Ovink: In fact, he swallowed the southwestern part of the Netherlands. Dams, dikes and dikes broke and the water sank, taking nearly 2,000 people. A lot of families were torn apart.
The Dutch still call it "the" disaster because they have not had one since – not a single death due to a flood in 65 years. They have learned the lessons of the past well. Dutch engineers calculate how high and strong dikes and dikes must be to withstand the most extreme weather conditions – a storm of 1 in 10,000.
Rotterdam is at the forefront of defensive design. This basketball court can hold 450,000 gallons of runoff. This sloping park at the top of a mall is an obstacle to storms. And this world-class rowing facility also serves as a flood reservoir. The Dutch are proud of the combination of shapes and functions.
The artificial dunes protect the city of Katwijk from the sea, under the dunes is a large car park
Bill Whitaker: What is this place? They look like dunes.
Henk Ovink: They are dunes.
Bill Whitaker: But I guess it's the Netherlands, so it's not just dunes.
Henk Ovink: These are artificial dunes.
Henk Ovink took us on one of his favorite projects along the North Sea. The seaside town of Katwijk was vulnerable until Dutch engineers created these natural dunes. Many beaches in the United States have artificial dunes, but they do not look anything like that.
Bill Whitaker: And these dunes protect the city from a sea wave or a big storm …
Henk Ovink: Sea wave, storm and also we are incorporating sea level rise in the future.
They have also integrated urban planning. To unclog the streets of Katwijk when tourists flock to the beach and raise the dunes to 25 feet above sea level, the engineers built a parking lot.
Bill: Under the dunes?
Henk: Under the dunes.
Bill Whitaker: So, all over the place, that is – I do not know, there are several football fields. Under all circumstances
Henk Ovink: Is a parking lot–
Bill Whitaker: – is a parking lot.
Henk Ovink: Nearly 700 cars can park here.
Bill Whitaker: Could such a structure have saved Sandy's New Jersey beach communities?
Henk Ovink: Yes. It could.
Much of the Netherlands is below sea level
You could call the Netherlands escape from the storms of Europe. Several large rivers are empty here. When France and Germany were flooded like this two years ago, most of this water was found in the Netherlands, but the Dutch cities were not flooded. They lower dikes and dams along some rivers.
Henk Ovink: Rivers are living elements in a landscape. And they get bigger when there is more water and become smaller when there is less and they must have this ability.
Bill Whitaker: So you went from flood control to controlled flooding.
Henk Ovink: Yeah.
Bill Whitaker: You have to let some places flood so that you can keep other dry places?
Henk Ovink: Yeah.
"It's a choice in the end – it's a human choice – we can think of this future as an opportunity or close our eyes and do nothing."
The Dutch call it "the place for the river".
Bill Whitaker: So is there where was your old house?
Vic Gremmer: Yeah.
Vic Gremmer, a social worker from the village of Werkendam, had to make room for the Merwede River himself. Hundreds of people like him had to move so that their properties could serve as flood plains.
Bill Whitaker: The government is coming and asking you to leave. Have you had a choice?
Vic Gremmer: Not really. We had the choice to leave or stay, but in their conditions.
The conditions: he could stay in the area, but had to sell the family home to the government. He used that money to build a new house on higher ground.
Bill Whitaker: What did you think of that when they tore up your house?
Vic Gremmer: The old house, there are 25 years of memories. It's really the end of– I'm starting to be emotional. (TO LAUGH)
But he said that he did it for the greater good. Allowing the swollen river to regroup in this new floodplain could save thousands of people from downstream floods in Rotterdam.
Bill Whitaker: The idea of getting people out of the floodplains in the United States would be millions of people. It would be a really difficult sale.
Henk Ovink: You pay for people to be in the most vulnerable places in your country. There is a national flood insurance program that goes bankrupt. You pay claims every year. And reconstruction is expensive. It's wasted
Correspondent Bill Whitaker with Henk Ovink
