Evacuation of Customers at Castorama in Rybnik After Suspicious Substances Found

On Thursday, February 26, a major emergency response operation took place at the Castorama home and garden store on Obwiednia Północna Street in Rybnik. Around 8:35 AM, employees in the garden department came across two jars containing an unknown substance. The report was first made to the police, whose officers arrived on the scene. After an initial assessment that the find did not pose an explosion risk, firefighting units were dispatched. Upon the store director's decision, an immediate evacuation was carried out. A total of 83 people had to leave the building – 43 employees and 40 customers. Four units of the State Fire Service from Rybnik were on-site, including a specialized Specialist Chemical Rescue Group from Katowice-Piotrowice. Their task was to verify whether the substance posed any threat to health or safety. Procedures for handling suspicious or dangerous substances in Poland are regulated by the Crisis Management Act and internal safety procedures for public facilities. In large retail chains, immediate evacuation is standard procedure upon any signal of potential danger. According to the press officer of the Municipal Headquarters of the State Fire Service in Rybnik, Staff Aspirant Wojciech Kasperzec, the operation was expected to conclude soon, and the services ruled out the existence of a real chemical or biological threat. „Currently, four firefighting units are working on-site, including a specialist chemical rescue group from Katowice-Piotrowice” – Kasperzec reported. Meanwhile, the police confirmed that the jars were noticed before 8:00 AM and that they did not pose an explosive risk. The incident in Rybnik occurred a day after a very similar event in Warsaw. On Wednesday, February 25, on the premises of University of Warsaw, at the Faculty of Biology on Miecznikowa Street, an unknown substance was also found in a tightly sealed container. According to the duty officer at the Municipal Headquarters of the State Fire Service in Warsaw, approximately 300 people were evacuated at that time. Eight firefighting units were sent to the scene, including the Specialist Chemical Rescue Group from Fire and Rescue Unit No. 2. The firefighters' actions lasted about two hours, after which the area was handed over to the police. The portal „Miejski Reporter” reported that analysis of the secured substance was still ongoing after 3:00 PM. Although the two incidents appear to be causally unrelated – separated by a distance of over 250 kilometers and affecting completely different institutions – their course is surprisingly similar. In both cases, suspicious substances were found in containers, triggering evacuation procedures and the intervention of specialized chemical services. In both situations, the services took immediate action to rule out threats to public safety. Such procedures, although costly and disruptive, are a standard, precautionary response to unknown factors that could potentially endanger life or health. 83 — People evacuated from the store in RybnikThe Rybnik operation shows a standard action protocol. The first contact is with the police, who assess basic threats, including explosion risk. If the situation requires specialized knowledge, the fire service is called, and in special cases – chemical rescue groups. The decision to evacuate is typically made by the facility manager in consultation with the services. Although no real threat was ultimately confirmed in either Rybnik or Warsaw, the actions taken were justified by the principle of paramount safety. Local media in both cities reported the events in real-time, highlighting the efficient cooperation between the services. Chronology of events: February 25, after 1:00 PM — Incident at UW; February 25, around 3:00 PM — Analyses ongoing in Warsaw; February 25, around 4:00 PM — End of operation in Warsaw; February 26, before 8:00 AM — Discovery at Castorama; February 26, 8:35 AM — Report to services; February 26, around 10:04 AM — Operation in progress