Emergency services are strengthening flood defenses in Central and Eastern Europe after torrential rains overflowed rivers and damaged thousands of homes.
One person has died from drowning in Poland, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Sunday.
Storm Boris also proved deadly in Romania on Saturday, where four people died in flash floods in the southeastern region of Galatia.
In the Czech Republic, floods have forced people to leave and 51,000 homes in the northern parts of the country have been hit by power cuts, Czech utility CEZ said. Flood barriers have been raised in the capital city of Prague.
“We are also facing the consequences of climate change, which is increasing in the European continent, with incredible consequences,” said Romanian President Klaus Iohannis on Saturday.
Heavy rain is increasing in Europe, as in the rest of the world, due to climate change.
Warm weather can hold more moisture, which can lead to heavy rain.
The mayor of Slobozia Conachi, a town in the Romanian region of Galathia, said 700 houses were flooded.
“This is a tragedy of great proportions,” said Emil Dragomir.
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EPAIn Glucholazy, in the southwestern region of Opole in Poland, the town’s mayor said the local river has overflowed and is now filling the town. He urged the residents to go out to higher ground on Sunday.
A resident of Glucholazy, Zofia Owsiaka, said that everyone in the town is “shocked” and it seems that there is no hope that the rain will stop.
In Krakow, Poland’s second largest city, residents were given sandbags to protect them from flooding.
Speaking from the town of Klodzko, one of the worst affected areas in Lower Silesia near the Czech border, Mr Tusk said 1600 people in the region had been evacuated.
He urged other residents to cooperate with the emergency services if they are asked to leave their homes.
In this area, there are 17,000 people without power,” he said. In some places, the cell phone signal is weak and the internet is not working, so he said he decided to use Starlink satellites.
He said the first Blackhawk helicopter was sent to the region’s capital, Wroclaw, where thousands of residents had to use the stairs of high-rise blocks because elevators were closed to prevent flooding, local media reported.
EPAIn the Czech Republic, a dam burst in the country’s South Bohemia region on Saturday. Environment Minister Petr Hladik urged those in the most affected areas to prepare to leave their homes.
Hladik said the ground is saturated and rainwater sits on top – increasing the risk of flooding. Rain in the Czech Republic is expected until Tuesday, the minister said.
Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said the country was preparing for a “difficult weekend”. Authorities have installed protective walls of sandbags and steel barriers.
Football matches in the two top leagues in the country that were scheduled to take place this weekend have been cancelled.
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