Agata and Sebastian Pioro were near tears, tired and dejected. They were cleaning up their home in Glucholazy, southern Poland, this week, clearing the mess left by the river flooding.
Inside, the walls were sweating, while outside the buildings, the family’s belongings were scattered by the waters of Storm Boris, which caused widespread damage across Central Europe this month.
At least 24 people have died in Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland and Romania in flooding caused by high winds and unusually heavy rainfall.
“It is indescribable what has happened. This unimaginable flood of water that has swept away everything in its path… merciless,” Agata Pioro told AFP.
The couple and their daughters, 10 and 14, were home when disaster struck. They watched helplessly as the water swept away their furniture, the refrigerator, the washing machine, their lives.
“That we lost everything we had collected over the years so quickly, and that our children witnessed it, will be etched in their memories forever,” Agata said, almost in tears.
The foundation of the building was exposed by the waves, leading authorities to decide to demolish the house.
The family left for friends but later returned to salvage what they could find of their belongings.
“The water was flowing through the walls,” said Sebastian Pioro, pointing to a stain about a meter above the ground.
– Torrent-
The Biala River, which normally flows about 50 meters from their home, flooded on September 15.
Within hours, the water flooded the picturesque town of Glucholazy, which was founded in the Middle Ages and has about 14,000 inhabitants.
“There was a real flood, which suddenly spread across the central square,” Mayor Pawel Szymkowicz told AFP.
“Never before in the city’s history has water reached the square, not even during the floods of 1997,” he said.
The water washed away two bridges, destroyed homes and schools, and damaged every road they encountered.
Several car wrecks full of broken branches were scattered along the riverbank near the Pioro family’s home.
Initial estimates put the damage to the city’s infrastructure alone at around 250 million zlotys ($65 million), Szymkowicz said.
The Polish government said 23 billion zlotys were available from national and European funds to help restore and rebuild the affected areas.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen last week announced a €10 billion ($11 billion) package for member states reeling from the “heartbreaking” devastation.
– ‘Insecurity’ –
Hundreds of volunteers from all over Poland have come to Glucholazy to help residents clean their homes and distribute food such as bread and soup, while soldiers clean the cellars of mud.
Almost all businesses in this tourist town are still closed.
“I was lucky, I only got half a meter of water. I hope to open again tomorrow or the day after,” said Artur, owner of a naturopathic shop.
“But some of my neighbours say they will never open again. They cannot recover after the water destroyed their businesses,” the man in his 40s told AFP.
Entrepreneurs Agata and Sebastian Pioro also fear for the future of their two menswear stores, one of which has been virtually wiped out.
“The worst thing is the uncertainty. We don’t even know if we can live here because the house is half destroyed,” Agata said, adding that she worried about future flooding.
“Sometimes I think about finding my family in another place on earth.”
bo-amj/rlp
