Dutch news in brief – 19 February

Hells Angels gang members buried

Hundreds of Dutch and foreign Hells Angels club members attended a funeral of two murdered colleagues in Sittard on Wednesday. The funeral ended without incident after gang members rode behind the hearse in twos from the De Nomads clubhouse in Oirsbeek to the cemetery. They wore white armbands with the names of the gunshot victims. The third victim was to be buried in Geldrop on Thursday.

TPG net profit slumps 40pc

Dutch postal company TPG reported a 40 percent fall in profit last year to EUR 359 million. The result was pressured by restructuring in its logistics division, higher pension costs and the strong euro. TPG said it performed to expectation and CEO Peter Bakker expressed full confidence in the 2004 results. TPG also gave a confident outlook for 2004 as it unveiled a strategy designed to save up to EUR 300 million by improving synergies between its three divisions.

Navy calls off search for poison drums

The Dutch navy has called off the search for 63 drums of arsenic pentoxide which fell from the cargo ship Andinet in a violent pre-Christmas North Sea storm. It is not clear if efforts will be resumed to recover the drums of agricultural poison. Three cargo containers which were leaking poison were recovered earlier this year. The three containers held in total 690 drums.

Retirement home inundated with toilet rolls

The Emmaus retirement home in Boxtel has been inundated with donated toilet paper rolls after announcing it will no longer supply elderly residents with the sanitary item. The cutbacks were made in a bid to reduce costs and maintain adequate standards of care, but members of the public, companies and radio hosts have since donated toilet rolls to the estimated 70 elderly residents of the home. The Brabant retirement home now has five wooden pallets of toilet paper, but some residents are reportedly agitated or are feeling patronised by the situation.

Free buses hugely popular

The trial of free buses between The Hague and several hinterland cities is being hailed a great success. The number of passengers on the 88 and 95 Connexxion bus lines has doubled to 2,500 each day. The EUR 1 million trial was launched on 5 January.

Subject: Dutch news