Hembrug

The Hembrug is the name given to a swing bridge built in 1878 to carry the railroad between Amsterdam and Zaandam in the Netherlands across the North Sea Canal, and to its replacement, a longer and higher bridge built between 1903 and 1907, after the canal had been widened to cater for an increase in ship traffic.

The newer bridge was approached by a long embankment, to enable the railroad to reach deck level on a moderate grade or slope.

During World War II, the bridge, which provided railroad access to the northern part of Holland, was rigged with demolition charges by the Germans, who loaded the central pier with 400 boxes, each containing 3 kilograms of explosives.

On 20 October 1974 Santa Fe Construction's semi-submersible derrick lay barge Choctaw II[1] caused damage which was not completely repaired.

Denied the status of Rijksmonument, the spans were removed later that year, and the bridge piers felled by explosives in the spring of 1985.