A giant steel bridge in Rotterdam is set to be partially demolished, just so Jeff Bezos can get through in his luxury yacht.
The Netherlands’ second-largest city is making big changes to its historic skyline, dismantling the city’s beloved bridge for Jeff Bezos and his excessively large yacht.
Built in 1927, the Koningshavenbrug De Hef is one of Rotterdam’s most iconic landmarks, playing a major role in the city’s identity.
After the bridge was renovated in 2017, the council vowed that the bridge would never be dismantled again… until big-boy Bezos came along to destroy the protected, heritage site.
The yacht is far too big to pass under the bridge, and according to the project leader, Marcel Walravens, “The only alternative is to take out the middle section,” (or just build a smaller boat, dude).
Now hypothetically, if you were planning on building an enormous, three-mast yacht, common sense would suggest that a coastal city with a sizeable port would be the obvious choice of location for the boat’s construction. But instead, the Amazon founder decided it would be a brilliant idea to have the yacht built in the small, landlocked town of Alblasserdam, with only a very narrow body of water for the yacht to sail out through.
The billionaire will cover the costs of the demolition, but he doesn’t seem too fussed about the inconvenience that this will cost the city.
Walravens hopes that the bridge will only be taken apart for a single day, but a lot of preparation will be required.
Once completed, the boat is set to be the largest sailing yacht in the world. But according to reports, it will still fall short of compensating for Bezos’ clear lack of any compassion.