Landslides have once again hit Lanckorona, a village 45 kilometres south of Krakow, threatening the village’s historic square and other settlements in its vicinity - meaning that Lanckorona needs your help more than ever.
By John Beauchamp, Polish Radio's Krakow correspondent.
The first onset of landslides took place in mid-May, after houses in the surrounding settlements of Łaśnica and Podchybie became afflicted by landslides that moved houses up to 10 metres.
Now, a second wave of destruction has occurred in Lanckorona, after a heavy rainstorm caused a landslide in the direct environs of the ‘Tadeusz’ guest-house, some 500 metres away from the village centre.
Lanckorona Mayor, Zofia Oszacka told Polish Radio’s External Service what caused the landslides:
Lieutenant Brigadier Pawel Kwarciak from the County Fire Department in nearby Wadowice was involved in the first wave of evacuations in Łaśnica, and said that “many homes had been destroyed, and we had to evacuate everyone immediately.”
Kwarciak, who was involved from the very beginning in the salvage operation, underlined that it was a “miracle that no-one died” during the landslides.
Zofia Frosztęga (left) has lived in Łaśnica for over 70 years.
Community meetings were held every evening with Mayor Oszacka and the emergency services in Łaśnica, where inspectors have deemed 34 houses to be in a state of irreparable damge. 20 families are to be moved elsewhere, much to the distaste of some residents who have lived in the settlement for over 70 years.
“We live here and I won’t go anywhere else, you don’t uproot old trees and plant them someplace else, I simply wouldn’t be able to take it psychologically,” says Zofia Frosztęga, whose house (see picture left) has been deemed uninhabitable by geology inspectors.
However, new developments are to be built in Lanckorona for the displaced members of the community, and a strategy to revitalise destroyed areas is being drawn up, as Mayor Oszacka explains:
Mayor Oszacka does not spare praise for everyone involved in the emergency undertaking:
It was announced, Monday, that Lanckorona would be one of fourteen districts in the Malopolska province that would receive a share of 600 million zloty (145 million euro) for the construction of new homes and repairs to the destroyed areas.
However, government aid may not be enough to cover the amount of destruction caused by the landslides. The Mayor of Lanckorona has started an appeal in order to raise funds for reconstruction work.
Photo (right): Emergency trenches had to be dug to divert water away from houses which could collapse at any minute.
Mayor Oszacka’s appeal to the listeners of Polish Radio:
Do you want to help the people of Lanckorona return to a normal life? Go to our special aid page for Lanckorona to find out how you can make a difference.
Photographs by Anna Spysz / Krakow Post
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