Overnight storms and gales swept across much of Poland, leaving a trail of flooded homes, uprooted trees, and widespread power outages. The State Fire Service reported that between midnight and 10:00 on Saturday, crews had responded to more than 4,000 incidents, ranging from pumping water out of basements and streets to securing damaged roofs and clearing fallen branches.
The brunt of the weather was felt in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, where firefighters in Toruń were most frequently called to drain water from properties and roads. In the Łódź Voivodeship, the main challenge was strong winds that toppled trees and snapped branches, though there were also some reports of localised flooding. "It wasn't tragic, but reports are still coming in," said the duty officer at the Provincial Crisis Management Centre in Łódź.
Scout camps evacuated as precaution
With forecasts predicting further severe weather, authorities took the precaution of evacuating 12 scout camps across the country. By midnight, eight camps had been cleared in Lower Silesia, Małopolska, Mazovia, Wielkopolska, and Warmia and Masuria. After midnight, four more camps in the Łódź Voivodeship were also evacuated. "Participants and staff have been taken to permanent buildings," Brigadier Karol Kroć of the State Fire Service told the Polish Press Agency, stressing that no injuries had been reported so far.
Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz announced that the Territorial Defence Forces remain on heightened alert to support public administration and emergency services in dealing with the aftermath of the dangerous weather.
Power cuts and river warnings
The storms also disrupted electricity supply, leaving around 19,400 households without power. The hardest-hit areas included Tomaszów Mazowiecki (about 5,500 customers), Zgierz (4,400), and Piotrków Trybunalski (3,200).
Heavy rainfall, locally reaching up to 90 millimetres, caused the Łyna river in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship to exceed its warning level. At the Olsztyn-Kortowo gauge, the river rose to 165 centimetres, 5 centimetres above the threshold. In the Bartąg area, water overtopped embankments and spread onto wasteland and into a drainage ditch, while allotment gardens in Olsztyn were flooded. The Regional Water Management Authority in Białystok said the situation was beginning to stabilise, with water levels gradually receding.
In Mazovia, the highest number of interventions were recorded in Warsaw and the districts of Piaseczno, Grójec, Pruszków, and Wołomin. "Reports are still coming in," said Brigadier Łukasz Darmofalski of the Mazovian fire service.
Caution urged as more wind expected
With strong gusts continuing, Kampinos National Park appealed to residents and tourists to exercise particular caution. "Avoid open spaces and places exposed to the wind. During strong gusts, do not stop under trees," the park advised, urging visitors to check the latest forecasts before heading out.
In Warsaw, the gardens of the Wilanów Palace Museum and the Royal Łazienki Park, as well as the city zoo, were closed until further notice. The Institute of Meteorology and Water Management issued warnings for storms in the southwest and strong winds in Podlaskie, Mazovian, Łódź, and Warmian-Masurian Voivodeships, with gusts also expected in Pomeranian, Świętokrzyskie, and Lublin regions.
The storm system is part of a broader pattern of unsettled weather across Europe, which has also brought severe flooding to northern Italy in recent days. While Poland's emergency services remain on high alert, the immediate focus is on restoring power and clearing debris as the weather front gradually moves eastward.
