NEWS
Bezos' Yacht Stuck as Company Rules out
Dismantling Iconic Bridge—Report
BY JACK
BERESFORD ON 7/1/22 AT 7:31 AM EDT
An historic
bridge in the Netherlands will reportedly no longer be dismantled to allow
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' new superyacht to pass through.
Back in
February, it was reported that Koningshavenbrug, a now-decommissioned lift
bridge known locally as De Hef, would be taken apart temporarily so the
billionaire's new 417-foot yacht Y721, which is being built by Dutch firm
Oceanco, could reach the ocean.
At present,
the three-mast ship, set to be the second largest superyacht in the world and
valued at nearly $500 million, cannot fit under the bridge without removing the
middle section.
The plans
sparked public outcry with De Hef viewed by many as one of Rotterdam's leading
landmarks and a popular destination for sightseeing tourists.
Now,
according to Dutch news outlet Trouw, which filed a freedom of information
request, the proposal has been shelved. It reports, as quoted by the NL Times,
that Oceanco has "informed the municipality that it is canceling its
current logistical plans."
Trouw
reported that the decision was a direct result of a public outcry that blew up
when the plans were first proposed. "Shipyard employees feel threatened
and the company fears it will be vandalized," Trouw said, according to
DutchNews.nl.
Local
groups had previously voiced their opposition to the move. In February, Ton
Wesselink from local history society Historisch Genootschap Roterodamum told
Rijnmond: "Jobs are important, but there are limits with what you can and
should do with our industrial heritage."
There was
similar anger online with a petition calling for a halt to the plans amassing
thousands of signatures. The petition noted that De Hef was only renovated in
2017, at which time "the municipality of Rotterdam promised that the bridge
would never be dismantled again." Yet, it noted that that promise seemed
"bound to be broken."
While Bezos
had pledged to cover the costs incurred in dismantling and rebuilding the
bridge, the petition organizer felt the plans still sent a message that
"as long as you are rich enough, there are no restrictions
whatsoever."
"Monuments
can be modified and rules—that apply to everyone—lifted," they noted,
going on to contrast "the eagerness with which Bezos' request is being
indulged" to his "rigidness and refusal in providing basic human
rights to his warehouse workers."
Thousands
more signed up to a planned protest that would have seen the superyacht pelted
with rotten eggs as it traveled through the city.
"Calling
all Rotterdammers," wrote event organizer Pablo Strörmann on Facebook,
"take a box of rotten eggs with you, and let's throw them en masse at
Jeff's superyacht when it sails through the Hef in Rotterdam."
It is not
yet clear how Bezos or Oceanco intend to proceed with the delivery of the super
yacht.
Newsweek
has contacted Amazon, Oceanco and Strörmann for comment.
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