– I confirm that I received such information from one of the editors of the local portal shortly after 12 o'clock. But I also could not fully believe this information – said Michał Piszko, the mayor of Kłodzko (Lower Silesia), on TVN24, who learned about the burst dam in a nearby town – which resulted in the flooding of his town – not from the district authorities nor from Polish Waters. The latter, however, explained that “at the time of the failure there was a complete lack of telephone and communication in the entire region”.
As we have already reported on tvn24.pl, the cities most affected by the flood in Lower Silesia included Lądek-Zdrój, Stronie Śląskie and Kłodzko. In the latter city, the embankment on the Morawka River burst during the pressure of the water on the dam, which led to the flooding of the city. After about three hours, the swollen Biała Lądecka River (which the Morawka flows into), having previously destroyed Stronie Śląskie and Lądek-Zdrój, flowed into the Nysa Kłodzka, which in turn flooded Kłodzko. As it turns out, the mayor of this city learned that the embankments next to the dam in Stronie Śląskie had burst not from the district crisis management center, not from Polish Waters, but from a journalist from a local portal. The erosion of the earth dam of the reservoir in Stara Morawka occurred – as reported by Polish Waters – at about 10:35 a.m. on 15.09.2024, i.e. on Sunday.
In Kłodzko, water destroyed streets and buildings TVN24
Mayor of Kłodzko: I received this information from the editor after 12 noon
Mayor Michał Piszko spoke about the situation on Friday evening on TVN24. Asked whether he had received information about the dam burst, he said: – Today I ordered a thorough search of all the office's email boxes. We looked through our phones – employees of the Crisis Management Department, as well as myself. We did not find such information – he said.
– And I confirm this fact that (…) shortly after 12 o'clock I received such information from one of the editors of the local portal. But I also could not fully believe this information – he added.
He also mentioned that “looking at the meteorological analyses and the local flood protection system, how the bars on the water gauges on individual rivers are rising, at 1:06 a.m. on the night from Saturday to Sunday, i.e. from September 14 to 15, I sent an SMS” informing that “due to the threat of flooding” the residents of individual streets “are advised to move to higher floors”. “If this is not possible – evacuate to the indoor swimming pool in Kłodzko” – the local government official quoted the message in a program on TVN24.
According to him Municipal Police with the Territorial Defense Forces “started going to the Malczewskiego housing estate, informing the residents that there was a request to evacuate”.
The interviewer, Radomir Wit, noted that Polish Waters reported that: “NW (Water Supervision – ed.) in Kłodzko received unofficial information that the earth dam of the reservoir in Stronie Śląskie had broken through at around 11:45. Unfortunately, this information could not be confirmed due to a lack of communication. This information was only confirmed at 1:05 p.m.”
– I don't know this message. I can only say from my point of view what the situation was like. Standing on the embankments after 2 p.m., it was 2:30-2:45 p.m., I simply noticed a drastic increase in water – said Piszko.
The head of crisis management in the Kłodzko district office resigned
Earlier on Friday, the mayor gave us a little insight into the events of the weekend. – I did indeed receive information from a journalist, but I couldn't believe it a hundred percent. According to my information, Polish Waters did not confirm for four hours that the embankment had cracked – said Michał Piszko. – The mayor should have received such information from the crisis management center in the Kłodzko district. But I did not receive it, and from what I know today, they also did not officially know about what happened at the dam in Stronie – he added in an interview with tvn24.pl. – We would have had time to evacuate many people, involve the services, and issue announcements – he emphasized. He also reported that yesterday (Thursday) the head of crisis management in the Kłodzko district office resigned from work with immediate effect.
Flood in KłodzkoKamil/ Contact24
Polish Waters: complete lack of communication
Our journalist called the spokesperson for Polish Water in Wrocław several times about this matter, but he did not answer the phone. He only replied to a text message sent. “Please contact the spokesperson for Polish Water directly,” he wrote in the message.
The State Water Management Authority Wody Polskie responded to the email only in the evening. It reported that the erosion of the earth dam of the reservoir in Stara Morawka occurred on Sunday, September 15, at around 10:35.
“At the time of the failure, there was a complete lack of telephone and communication in the entire region. NW in Kłodzko received unofficial information that the earthen dam of the reservoir in Stronie Śląskie had broken through at around 11:45. Unfortunately, this information could not be confirmed due to the lack of communication. It was not until 13:05 that this information was confirmed. The Operational Centre of the Regional Water Management Authority in Wrocław was informed about everything on an ongoing basis,” we read in the message.
As PGW WP explains, until the loss of communication, the reservoir operators informed the crisis management centre in Stronie Śląskie about the situation in the reservoir every hour.
“In addition, the manager of the NW in Kłodzko informed the Mayor of Stronie Śląskie about the necessary evacuation already on September 14, 2024 at 10:52 p.m. Information about the necessary evacuation of the population was also provided by the operator of the Stronie Śląskie dam on September 15, 2024, just after 7:00 a.m.” – we read.
“The reservoir staff were unable to pass on information due to the complete lack of communication. When the water overflowed the reservoir's earth dam, the crisis management centre in Stronie Śląskie was informed via the municipal guard present on site. This was the only possible means of communication at that time,” explains PGW WP.
Klodzko, Grottgera 3 street after floodingDariusz Gdesz/PAP
They knew something like this had happened, but they didn't have a man there
We spoke with a journalist from the portal 24klodzko.pl, Joanna Żabska, who informed the mayor of Kłodzko that the embankments at the dam in Stronie Śląskie had burst and a flood wave was heading towards the city. – We received information from people who had seen the dam burst and the water starting to escape directly. This person posted a video on Facebook with an appeal: “run away, everyone who can”. I then called the mayor that the embankment had burst in Stronie, I ran to the crisis management at the district office, which did not have such information and called Polish Waters when I was there. The district office heard that they had heard that something like this had happened, but they could not confirm it because they did not have a person on site – the journalist reported.
Main image source: PAP/Ewa Moldysz