AllMovie

In this episode of the History Channel series Wrath of God, which explores different natural disasters through the ages, there is a look at the deadly and highly destructive flood in the Netherlands in 1953. Before this flood, the country, 40 percent of which is below sea level, was protected with a series of dikes and breakwaters, keeping the water back. In 1953, this system failed miserably, after the North Sea flooded many towns in the country, sweeping over 47,000 homes and killing over 1,800 people. Photographs and interviews with survivors add personal touches to this horrific episode in European history. In more recent times, engineers have worked on a much more sophisticated system for controlling the waters, putting residents' minds at ease that they will be safe from a reoccurrence of a flood like the one in 1953.