Storm Boris Europe: 'Catastrophic' floods hit Poland, Romania, Austria and Czech Republic killing at least eight as armed forces deployed
‘Catastrophic’ floods have hit Central and Eastern Europe as Storm Boris continues to pummel the region.
One person drowned in southwestern Poland on Sunday (15 September), a firefighter taking part in rescue efforts was killed in Austria and two more people were killed in Romania as strong winds and heavy rains were forecast. Floods killed four people in Romania on Saturday (14 September).
Thousands of people were evacuated on Sunday from their homes in the Czech Republic following days of torrential rain that caused rivers to burst their banks in several parts of the region. A low-pressure system named Boris has triggered downpours from Austria to Romania, leading to some of the worst flooding in nearly three decades in the Czech Republic and Poland.
More rain and strong winds are forecast today (Monday 16 September), though the rain eased on Sunday in Romania. Thousands of homes were damaged over the weekend, bridges swept away and at least 250,000 households were affected by power cuts. Moldova was also hit and more rain was expected to fall in the coming days too.
Romanian President Klaus Iohannis offered his condolences to the victims' families, saying: "We must continue to strengthen our capacity to anticipate extreme weather phenomena. We are again dealing with the effects of climate change, which are increasingly present throughout the European continent, with dramatic consequences on people."
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who visited nearby flooded areas, said on X, formerly Twitter, that the government would announce a state of disaster and seek European Union aid. In Krakow, Poland's second largest city, residents have been offered sandbags for flood protection. Speaking from the town of Klodzko, one of the worst-affected areas, Tusk said 1600 people in the district had been evacuated.
Karl Nehammer, the Austrian chancellor, has said that the Austrian armed forces have been deployed in storm-hit regions and that 2,400 soldiers are on standby to help fill sandbags, evacuate people or do clean-up work. European Union chiefs have offered to assist countries dealing with the downpours. European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen expressed her “heartfelt solidarity” to EU countries impacted by the flooding, also paying condolences to flooding “victims and their families” in a social media post.