With water levels in some places already higher than they were during the flood of 1997, Olawa and Wroclaw in southwestern Poland are bracing for the expected flood peak.
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00:00This is the town of Owawa in south-western Poland.
00:04It is located between the river of the same name and the river Oder, of which it is a tributary.
00:10While floodwaters are receding elsewhere in central Europe,
00:14this region still faces the threat of rising water levels.
00:18The Owawa river has risen to over 7 meters in the past two days.
00:23Hundreds of volunteers have come out to stack sandbags to create a protective barrier.
00:28The people are tired, but absolutely determined to carry on.
00:58We don't know. All we know is that we have some great people
01:02who sit and carry bags from morning to night.
01:09In the village of Stanowice, the Owawa river has swollen so much
01:13that there is a risk the embankments will not hold.
01:16Over 200 volunteers and tens of firefighters are stacking sandbags
01:20in an attempt to hold back the river.
01:23Although the water levels seemed to have dropped slightly on Wednesday evening,
01:27the fire department has said that water levels here are higher now
01:30than they were during the great flood of 1997.
01:34This year, the Owawa river has really risen quite a lot.
01:38The forecast did not indicate this, but unfortunately the flood is very dynamic
01:43and the situation here changes from hour to hour,
01:46so we also have to observe what is happening
01:49and apply prevention measures in the form of securing these flood protection devices.
02:03Two years later, the Marszowice district in the north-west of the city was flooded.
02:08Volunteers and the military have been reinforcing the barriers with sandbags.
02:12Agnieszka Wojciak lives in a building located in a flood zone.
02:16I live on the first floor, so I am a bit afraid that the water will reach a certain level.
02:23We have been working here for two days to save the water.
02:27The riverbed is already flooded, although we also have riverbeds here.
02:30It is difficult. Now we are waiting, observing, raising the wall so that the housing estate does not flood.
02:37The Polish authorities have said that about 16,000 soldiers have been deployed
02:42to the country's flood-hit regions,
02:44with the armed forces using helicopters to evacuate people and strengthen flood defences.