It’s been cold. The canals have frozen over. Some of the neighbours have
gone away for wintersports holidays, leaving their houses alone in the ice.
One such neighbour had some bad luck this morning. At 8am a pipe
froze and burst, filling his houseboat with water. There was no way
to stop it from sinking. The water service came, they pumped, but
the house is now resting on the bottom of the canal, one side being
held up by the wall tethers.
click to zoom in
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As seen from across the canal.
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As seen from across the canal.
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As seen from across the canal.
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As seen from across the canal.
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As seen from across the canal.
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As seen from across the canal.
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Sending a movie to his friend.
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Neighbors tweeting away about the sinking.
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Floating patio items frozen in place in the ice.
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Now what?
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Neighbors gathering around to take pictures and discuss the tragedy.
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Shocking and sad.
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Tour boats slowing to see the site.
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The owner was away on holiday. A terrible thing to come home to.
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The ice quickly froze again around the submerged house.
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Waternet tried to save it, but it was in vain.
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Resting on the canal floor, 6ft below.
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No amount of pumping would save it once it started to sink.
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Tragedy. Resting on the bottom of the canal now.
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Now it rests on the bottom, one side still attached to the canal wall.
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In a matter of minutes, the house sank, breaking the ice around it.
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At 8am, a pipe froze and burst, quickly filling the houseboat with water.
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Across the canal from Waterlooplein February 5, everything normal.