It’s a bit of suffering for those who spend this May holiday outside. Last night it was even -2.5 degrees near Arnhem. It could freeze again tonight.
But not all campers are deterred by this. “Everyone should be able to handle the cold, right?”, says Vita and Olivia’s father at a campsite in Oostkapelle at Omroep Zeeland. Nevertheless, he has placed a heater in his daughters’ tent just to be on the safe side.
Because it will also be cold this King’s Night, the Red Cross advises partygoers to dress thickly. “Especially when people drink alcohol, hypothermia is lurking and that can have nasty consequences,” said the aid organization.
It is not unique that it is so cold at the end of April. In 2017, for example, it also cooled down to -2 degrees in De Bilt on the night before King’s Day. But after a number of springs in which the temperature rose effortlessly to 20 degrees (or more), with afternoon temperatures of less than 10 degrees and frost, it is now a bit of a struggle.
You don’t feel the alcohol
Anyone who takes to the streets tonight for King’s Night should be well prepared, says the Red Cross. “Hypothermia develops faster when people have been drinking. Alcohol dilates the blood vessels, which gives a warm feeling, but you also lose heat as a result. The body temperature drops, but people do not feel this because of the alcohol,” the aid organization warns.
An extra warning applies to anyone who has found a nice spot at a flea market, next night or tomorrow morning. “The cold of Wednesday night is still in the ground,” says Louse Schalkoort of the Red Cross. “So don’t let children sit on the cold floor, but take a chair with you. And dress them well. It is good to drink enough water or hot tea and eat well in between.”
The Red Cross is ready with an aid station in more than a hundred places. Schalkoort: “We have (insulation) blankets ready at the first aid posts, so that people warm up faster. And possibly also hot drinks, such as tea or broth. Fortunately, it remains dry, but we should not underestimate the cold. It is even getting colder than on New Year’s Day.”
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