The construction of the metro in Amsterdam has been halted due to problems

The Hague - The construction of a new metro line in the center of the Dutch city of Amsterdam had to be suspended for a longer period after a water breach into the construction pit caused significant subsidence of the foundations of the historic houses in the vicinity. Mayor of this port city, Job Cohen, ordered the work to stop when the walls of six buildings cracked and their residents had to be evacuated. This is not the first accident of this kind, the AP agency reported late last night.
    The metro construction in Amsterdam had so far been a source of pride for Dutch construction. However, the north-south line under construction runs through the saturated soils of the historic center, where 16th-century houses rest on foundations reinforced with deep wooden piles. During the incident that occurred on Thursday night, water from the area beneath the houses escaped into the metro construction pit. This disrupted the centuries-old pressure balance, the drained substrate settled, and the foundations of the affected buildings dropped by up to 23 centimeters. The walls and ceilings in six houses cracked, and plaster fell off. Two dozen people were evacuated and stayed with friends or in hotels.
    "I have bad news for the evacuees: they will have to live away from home for several months," said expert Tjeerd Herrema, who assessed the severity of the situation. He refused to specify how long the metro construction would be halted and how much costs would rise.
    The public is increasingly voicing its displeasure since this is not the first construction accident during the building of this line. As early as June, four houses near the Vijzelgracht were damaged. "They told us back then that they had everything under control, that they had investigated everything," local resident Peter Doeswijk told the media. "Experts of various kinds came to us and reassured us. Then the work resumed, and it happened again in a few days," he added.
    Mayor Cohen announced that the city and construction companies now need time to gather facts and decide how to proceed.
    The construction of the ten-kilometer-long line began in 2003 and was supposed to be completed in 2013, with a budget of 1.8 billion euros (approximately 44 billion CZK). However, the geological situation in Amsterdam is very complicated, with some streets in the city below sea level at high tide. In some sections, the tunnels of the route are being built so deep that workers have to use decompression chambers when leaving the worksite to avoid the threat of air embolism, warns AP.