In the Netherlands, construction of the Afsluitdijk is completed and the Zuiderzee bay is converted to the freshwater IJsselmeer.
The Afsluitdijk (Dutch: [ˈɑfslœydɛik] (listen); West Frisian: Ofslútdyk; Dutch Low Saxon: Ofsluutdiek; English: "Closure Dike") is a major dam and causeway in the Netherlands. It was constructed between 1927 and 1932 and runs from Den Oever in North Holland province to the village of Zurich in Friesland province, over a length of 32 kilometres (20 mi) and a width of 90 metres (300 ft), at an initial height of 7.25 metres (23.8 ft) above sea level.
The Afsluitdijk is a fundamental part of the larger Zuiderzee Works, damming off the Zuiderzee, a salt water inlet of the North Sea, and turning it into the fresh water lake of the IJsselmeer. It is a major landwinning project and a quicker road-connection between the North and West of the Netherlands.
The motorway on the Afsluitdijk was the initial demonstration site for a 130 km/h (81 mph) speed limit in the Netherlands.