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Piet van der Lee Bridge

This bridge is named after Piet van der Lee.

On September 8, 1944, Piet and five members of the Margriet gang go by bicycle to Cromvoirt to collect dropped weapons and ammunition. Near the Zegenwerp estate in Sint-Michielsgestel, the group unexpectedly runs into a German guard post. The soldier calls them for identity cards, whereupon one of the members of the gang shoots the German. The shot alarms the other soldiers, after which the resistance fighters flee one by one, leaving their bicycles behind. With the Germans on their heels, Piet and his three comrades run to the Institute for the Deaf, but they are shown the door. They then reach the Dommel via a ditch. The only way out is to wade through the river, but only one of the four can swim. Piet tries to reach the other side himself, but suddenly dies in the middle of the river, possibly from the consequences of a heart attack in the cold water.

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  • Photos: Martin Damen