Rzeszów floods as thunderstorms swamp Podkarpacie, hospital halts admissions

Storm hits Podkarpacie

Intense rainfall and thunderstorms swept across the Podkarpacie voivodeship on Friday, 7 August 2026, beginning around noon and covering the entire region. A second-degree weather warning for heavy rain was in effect until 16:00. The hardest-hit areas were the city of Rzeszów and the counties of rzeszowski and ropczycko-sędziszowski, which generated the most emergency calls.

Rainfall totals varied sharply. TVN24 meteorologist Arleta Unton-Pyziołek reported 82 litres per square metre in Jastrzębia (tarnowski county), 58 l/m² in Lutowiska (bieszczadzki county), and 57 l/m² in Tuchów (tarnowski county). At Rzeszów's Jasionka airport, 23 l/m² was recorded, though Unton-Pyziołek noted that locally in the region amounts could have reached 40 l/m². On the Slovak side of the Tatra Mountains, rainfall reached 80 l/m², causing flash floods there as well.

Hospital and theatre flooded

The University Clinical Hospital at Chopina street in Rzeszów was among the most affected buildings. Water flooded level minus one, reaching the emergency room, part of the hospital pharmacy, the kitchen, and storage areas. Hospital spokesperson Andrzej Sroka said firefighters pumped out the water and drying was underway, with the emergency room expected to resume accepting patients around 20:00. The hospital at Krakowska street was also partially flooded in its basement. Firefighters additionally helped remove water from the flooded basements of the Theatre im. Wandy Siemaszkowej.

Streets and transport disrupted

Rzeszów's streets turned into rivers as the drainage system failed to absorb the volume of water. The underpass on Wyzwolenia street was impassable for a time, and water flowed down Piłsudskiego avenue, causing traffic jams. Rzeszów's MPK public transport reported disruptions on Wyzwolenia, Paderewskiego, Rocha, and Piłsudskiego streets, with buses running behind schedule. Firefighters received about 15 calls concerning flooded streets in the city. After the rain stopped, the situation gradually normalised, though one lane on Wyzwolenia remained closed due to a missing manhole cover.

Power outages and wind damage

Anna Olko-Wilk, duty officer at the Voivodeship Crisis Management Centre in Rzeszów, reported that 3,295 customers were without electricity, mainly in the Krosno and Sanok areas. An earlier report cited approximately 800 customers without power, mainly near Mielec and Krosno. The storm damaged 27 medium-voltage lines. In Przemyśl, a tree blown over by strong winds damaged three cars, and a similar incident occurred in the ropczycko-sędziszowski county. No injuries were reported in any of these incidents.

Firefighter response

Firefighters across the voivodeship intervened over 200 times, according to several sources, though later reports cited over 150 interventions. The count stood at about 70 by 13:00, as reported by Super Express citing the regional fire service. Operations focused on pumping water from flooded basements of residential, public, and commercial buildings, clearing blocked culverts, and removing broken branches and fallen trees from roads and pavements.

Fortunately, no one was hurt. No one was injured.

Senior brigadier Marcin Betleja, spokesperson for the Podkarpacie fire service, appealed for caution during storms.

We appeal for common sense. If a storm is passing over our region or is forecast, let us stay home. That is where we are safest.