Safety-related closure of paths, playground and subway

The reason for this is the result of a regular inspection, during which it was established that the stability of the dam can no longer be guaranteed beyond doubt in the event of extreme weather events.

An overflow or even a breach of the entire earth dam as a result of heavy rainfall or flooding cannot be ruled out. Behind the dam structure there is a playground, several hiking trails and a subway, among other things, which could be flooded in such an event. Against this background, the town of Beckum has decided to take this precautionary emergency measure for reasons of hazard prevention.

The outlet structure, which is used to regulate the water level, was found to be in poor condition back in 2019. Since then, the water level has been kept as low as possible as a precautionary measure to reduce the load on the structure. While the inspection of the embankments at the time confirmed that they were still sufficiently stable and only minor damage - such as subsidence on the footpath and cycle path - had to be repaired, a current expert opinion as part of recurring inspections comes to a much more critical assessment.

The town of Beckum has repeatedly pointed out in the past that this situation is not a permanent solution and most recently applied to the district of Warendorf in May 2025 for a planning approval procedure to redesign the eastern Hellbach valley. The plan is to dismantle the existing dam structure, redesign the Hellbach in a natural way and improve the quality of the green space with a new open space concept including a modern playground. The necessary authorisation from the district of Warendorf is still pending.

Parallel to the closure that has now taken place, the town of Beckum is currently examining suitable measures to ensure safety in the eastern Hellbachtal until the planned remodelling is implemented.