Stormfloden den 3. december 1909 forårsagede store ødelæggelser på Esbjerg Havn. Blandt andet løftede stormen Fanø-færgen op på kajen i Esbjerg Havn.
The great storm surge of December 3rd 1909 caused major damage to the harbour of Esbjerg. It left the ferry to the island of Fanø partly hanging on the quayside.
Der blev derfor opført et dige til at beskytte området, og bag diget anlagde man fra 1913-1914 en landevej (Hjertingvejen). Sammen med en bro over Fovrfeld Bæk åbnede vejen området for trafik og ikke mindst esbjergensernes brug af det.
Efterfølgende storme understregede dog digets utilstrækkelighed. Ved stormfloden den 30. august 1923 blev Hjertingvejen nærmest skyllet væk nogle steder, og helt galt gik det ved stormfloden den 24. november 1928, som forvandlede broen over Fovrfeld Bæk til en fritstående skulptur. Indtil forbindelsen mellem broen og Hjertingvej var blevet genskabt, kunne kørende trafik ikke passere bækken, mens fodgængere og cyklister kunne stage sig over i en lille båd.
Hjertingvej efter stormfloden den 30. august 1923.
Hjertingvej after the storm surge of August 30th 1923.
Resterne af broen over Fovrfeld Bæk efter stormfloden den 26. november 1928.
The remains of the bridge over Fovrfeld Stream after the storm surge of November 26th 1928.
Et stærkere dige måtte til, og med kystsikringen bragt i orden omkring 1930 kunne der arbejdes med planer for områdets anvendelse. Det blev bl.a. til en kirkegård, som Esbjerg Købstad manglede voldsomt på det tidspunkt.
The scenery
In 1909 the Danish Parliament passed a law about a fairly big expansion of the Port of Esbjerg which was then government owned and operated so the Danish Government had to compensate the City of Esbjerg for the land it had expropriated for the new harbour. The compensation was land West off the new harbour area close to the coast, at the time mainly used as pasture and at first sight not very useful for the city. Furthermore, the low-lying area was exposed to being flooded by storm surges which was proved by the storm surges of 1909 and 1911.
A dike was built to protect the area against storm surges and a road – Hjertingvejen (built 1913-1914) – made it more accessible. A bridge over Fovrfeld Stream (Fovrfeld Bæk) opened the coastline for traffic and made it accessible for people from Esbjerg.
The storm surges of 1923 and 1928 proved, however, that the dike was insufficient. Big parts of the road were taken by the sea and most of the bridge over Fovrfeld Bæk was demolished as well. Until repair was done the road was closed for driving traffic whereas pedestrians and cyclists could cross the small stream using a small boat.
The dike was reinforced and the area behind the dike so protected that it caught the attention of city planners. Around 1930 the City of Esbjerg had great need for a third cemetery and lots of acres behind the dike were available.