Participants in a raftsman's cruise on the Vistula from Gdańsk to Warsaw ran aground near Nowy Dwór Mazowiecki. Rescuers brought five people to shore, including a 9-year-old girl. No one was hurt.
The firefighters received a report about the raftsmen's boats that had run aground after 3 p.m. – The water level on the Vistula is very low, only 20 cm higher than the historically lowest from 1933 – says Marek Karpowicz, spokesman for the Volunteer Fire Department – Water Rescue in Nowy Dwór Mazowiecki.
As he reports, firefighters sailed out to retrieve the trapped people using the Whaly rescue boat and a jet ski. “After 15 minutes, we were almost there,” says Karpowicz. Almost, because the firefighters had to walk the last kilometer. It was too shallow for the boat and jet ski.
They sailed on rafts from Gdańsk to Warsaw
At the scene, firefighters found two wooden raftsmen's boats carrying a total of five people, including a 9-year-old girl. There was also a dog on board one of the boats.
According to Karpowicz, no one required medical assistance. – We helped the survivors get to shore – says the spokesman. The boats were taken off the shallows and anchored.
The cruise participants told firefighters that they had been traveling for several days. They would spend the night in Nowy Dwór Mazowiecki and if the conditions on the river improved, they would try to sail to Warsaw.
Main image source: Facebook/Volunteer Fire Department – Water Rescue in Nowy Dwór Mazowiecki