Overview
- The city held a two-minute silence at 13:27, followed by wreath-laying at De Verwoeste Stad, with live coverage on TV Rijnmond.
- Mayor Carola Schouten laid a wreath and said recent unrest over asylum shelters shows why Rotterdam must reject violence and stand up for democratic rules.
- Residents joined grassroots rites, with readings of a memorial poem at 86 street corners at 13:30 and gatherings at Plein 1940 and along Statenweg.
- The remembrance shared the day with Ascension Day outings, including an evening concert by the Rotterdam Philharmonic in the Laurenskerk and a regional TV screening of Max Ploeg’s documentary at 17:00.
- The city recalls that the 1940 raid lasted about 15 minutes, dropped roughly 1,300 bombs, killed about 900 people, and drove some 80,000 from their homes.