The Oder is littered with dead fish, reports the German TV channel Das Erste. The mass death of fish covered hundreds of kilometers of the river flowing into the Baltic Sea and sometimes passing along the border of Germany and Poland. Hundreds of military and rescue workers are working to limit the damage and trying to pull tons of dead fish out of the water. The cause of the environmental disaster is still unknown, but the Polish government believes that it may be chemical waste dumped into the river.
"The whole river is dead," is how a rescue worker describes the ecological catastrophe that is now unfolding on the Oder. The mass of dead fish carcasses caught from the river can only be measured in tons — and it is still unknown what or who is to blame for this. This mass death extends for hundreds of kilometers on both sides of the border with Poland. The river carries its waters to the Baltic Sea, carrying with it obvious traces of decomposition that have already reached the Stettiner Haff. Our correspondent Olaf Bock covers the situation from the border settlement of Vidukhov.
Oder under Vidukhova — dead fish, wherever you look. Janusz Kulka doesn't get it all in his head: he spent almost all his life here — and now this is happening here. A 65-year-old man finds it difficult to find words.
JANUSZ KULKA, a local resident: I'm so terribly sorry. But what can be done? It just breaks my heart.
Just a couple of days ago, he was still sitting here and fishing — now there are only dead fish around. His seven-year-old grandson Maximilian came to visit him, the summer holidays are not over yet. "Just don't get too close to the water."
MAXIMILIAN, grandson of a fisherman: When I woke up this morning, there were so many dead fish in the water that I just couldn't look at it.
Barrage devices on the Polish bank of the river should prevent the further advance of dead fish. Prime Minister Morawiecki has formed an idea of what is happening today. The reaction was too slow — such accusations are made against Germany. The Prime Minister said that he, too, learned too late about the mass death of fish. Because of this, the head of water protection and the head of the environmental protection department were dismissed yesterday.
MATEUSZ MORAWIECKI, Prime Minister of Poland: We are trying to eliminate this ecological disaster, this misfortune as soon as possible, and we are also concentrating on restoring the river to its original state.
To do this, the military and rescuers are working here — they are trying to limit the damage. The exact cause of the mass death of fish has not yet been found. German and Polish water samples showed too high salt content in the Oder. The Polish government rejects mercury as a possible cause. Other toxicological studies are still being conducted. The Government believes that chemical waste was dumped into the river. For indications of possible culprits, a reward in the amount of approximately € 215 thousand is promised.
At the moment, residents of Western Pomerania cannot use water from the Oder for their animals or watering plants. Direct contact with the river should be avoided. For Janusz Kulka, this is a difficult day — exactly on his 65th birthday.
