On the rivers in the southern part of the Silesian Voivodeship, the alarm levels were significantly exceeded on the night from Saturday to Sunday. Some rivers overflowed. Bielsko firefighters report evacuations in Bestwin, Międzyrzecz and Bielsko-Biała.
According to IMGW data, after heavy rainfall, rivers in the southern Silesian province exceeded alarm levels. This is the case on the Olza in Cieszyn, whose level before 1:30 a.m. reached 381 cm. This is 151 cm above the alarm level. The water is increasing. The river belongs to the Odra catchment area. The alarm was exceeded on the Vistula in the towns of Wisła, Skoczów and Ustroń. Huge increases occurred on the Biała River in Bielsko-Biała. In Mikuszowice, it reached the level of 260 cm. The historical maximum in July 1970 was 257 cm there. The river flows through the city center in its full bed.
Dozens of people were evacuated from endangered areas
The officer on duty at the municipal fire department, Asp. Szymon Herok, informed that at around 3 a.m. rescuers were handling around 600 incidents in the Bielsk district and Bielsko-Biała related to overflowing watercourses.
– We are working in Bielsko-Biała, Bestwina, Czechowce-Dziedzice, Jasienica and Jaworze. We are mainly pumping water from properties. 20-30 people were evacuated from endangered places in Bestwina, Międzyrzecz Dolne and from Nad Potokiem Street in Bielsko-Biała – announced asp. Herok.
Flood alert status in Bielsko-Biała
The spokesman for the Bielsko city council, Tomasz Ficoń, said that a flood alert had been in effect in Bielsko-Biała since 1 a.m. Firefighters in the city intervened about 250 times in a few hours.
Flood emergency service in Bielsko-BiałaCrisis Management Department of the Bielsko-Biała City Hall
– The most difficult situation is in the district of Stare Bielsko, where a stream overflowed and flooded the properties located there. A mother and two children were evacuated from there. The Niwka River also overflowed. The Biała River reached a record level in 90 years – said Ficoń.
Flood emergency service in Bielsko-BiałaCrisis Management Department of the Bielsko-Biała City Hall
According to information from IMWM, in the last six hours 101.2 mm of rain per square metre fell in Błatnia in the Silesian Beskids, in the Bielsko district of Wapienica – 98.3 mm, in Brenna – 95.9 mm, and in the centre of Bielsko-Biała – 89.4 mm.
Photos sent to local media by Bielsko residents show numerous floods on the roads. Underpasses, among others, were flooded. A supermarket in Stare Bielsko was flooded. A small bridge over the Biała River by the City Hall was closed to pedestrians.
Throughout Saturday, the most difficult situation was in Zebrzydowice in Cieszyn Silesia, but it is slowly stabilizing there. – The crisis team is still working. Firefighters are responding to current signals from residents. They are pumping water from properties. For now, there are no signals that an evacuation is needed, but we are waiting because it is still raining – said deputy mayor Aleksander Cierniak.
Main image source: Crisis Management Department of the Bielsko-Biała City Hall