Ice Jam on the Wkra River: River Overflowed Its Banks, Flooding Dozens of Properties

A rapid warming after a cold wave led to the formation of a dangerous ice jam on the Wkra River, which caused the river to overflow its banks near the town of Błędowo in Masovia. Ice floes, blocking the free flow of water, caused a sudden damming of the river, which quickly exceeded the alarm level. As a result, between 20 and nearly 30 residential and farm properties were submerged. The fire brigade and water management specialists are monitoring the situation, trying to prevent further escalation of the element. The Ministry of Interior and Administration is directly involved in the operation, and Minister Marcin Kierwiński announced full support for the affected residents. A decision was made to establish a crisis staff coordinating the work of the State Fire Service units and volunteers. Experts are analyzing the possibility of conducting a controlled ice jam blasting. Although according to the latest reports from the morning of February 27th the situation has been preliminarily stabilized, the water level remains above safe norms, and ice still blocks the riverbed at key points. Ice jams on Polish lowland rivers, such as the Wkra or Vistula, are a cyclical phenomenon that most often occurs during sudden thaws. Historically, one of the most dangerous ice jam floods occurred in 1982 in the Płock region, forcing the evacuation of thousands of people. Simultaneously, incidents related to ice movements were recorded in other regions of the country. In Bydgoszcz, broken ice floes caused a barge to sink at the entrance to the Winter Port, showing the scale of the threat posed by masses of frozen water moving with the current. The services appeal for special caution near watercourses and preparation for the possible need for rapid evacuation of property from threatened areas. Residents of Błędowo, whose homes were flooded, are waiting for the waters to recede to begin assessing damages, while firefighters continue pumping water out of basements and the lowest floors of buildings. „Monitorujemy sytuację na Wkrze. Służby są na miejscu, robimy wszystko, aby zabezpieczyć mienie mieszkańców.” (We are monitoring the situation on the Wkra River. The services are on site, we are doing everything to secure the residents' property.) — Marcin Kierwiński