Due to heavy rainfall in the Otmuchów municipality in the Opole Voivodeship, an embankment broke on Sunday. Again, because the structure was also damaged during the 2024 flood. The local community rebuilt it on their own, but only in a temporary, makeshift manner. The mayor of the municipality, Damian Nowakowski, emphasized that “the government did not respond in any way,” and now “residents may once again be facing a tragedy.”
On Sunday, part of the municipality was flooded due to intense rainfall. In the afternoon, IMGW (Institute of Meteorology and Water Management) raised the alert levels related to weather conditions, and a spokesperson for the institute stressed that the situation is “dangerous and rapidly changing.”
Poles fear a repeat of the 2024 flood and accuse the authorities of being unprepared for such a scenario. The consequences of governmental inaction are already being felt by residents of the Otmuchów municipality in the Opole Voivodeship.
The municipal office published a video showing that, due to the rising water level in the Widnawa river, the embankment in the village of Kałów had burst. The structure was previously destroyed last year. Residents, together with the village head, rebuilt it on their own – but only temporarily.
The mayor of Otmuchów did not hide his frustration at the fact that the state did nothing for ten months to address the issue, which has now led to another catastrophe.
“I regret that Wody Polskie (Polish Waters) did not take any action, despite us sending many requests and official letters to them,” Damian Nowakowski told the media.
He stressed that the embankment breach is a disaster for the residents. “Now we’re facing massive losses, because farmers have their crops here, and they were supposed to harvest them in a month – those crops will be destroyed. We no longer have the county road (droga powiatowa), which the district head was repairing with the help of the army,” he enumerated.
“This is a disaster for the Otmuchów municipality, a disaster for the residents. The main water pipeline runs along that road. Last year, the pipeline was destroyed, and for over a week, residents […] had no water. Imagine, in just a few days […] residents may once again be left without water,” he added.
Not just Otmuchów
The Otmuchów municipality is not the only place where government inaction may lead to disaster. Weather conditions have also severely impacted Nysa, another town in the Opole Voivodeship.
“All emergency services are on standby, and we’re responding. Mostly, properties and garages are flooded. We also have a situation where water is flowing down from the fields and unfortunately flooding the roads,” Nysa mayor Kordian Kolbiarz told Polsat News.
The local official pointed out that many local roads are impassable. Flooding is occurring both in the town and on its outskirts. One major issue is the blockage of drainage ditches and culverts, which the local government has no access to, as they fall under the jurisdiction of Wody Polskie. The state-owned company has done nothing with them since last year’s flood.
“Unfortunately, most of the culverts and ditches remain untouched since the flood. They’re overgrown, clogged, and we keep informing Wody Polskie about this – residents, village heads, firefighters – but the results are very poor […] There is still a lack of immediate work that would ensure the residents’ safety,” Kolbiarz pointed out.