A severe winter storm has plunged parts of Poland into chaos, leaving tens of thousands of households without electricity and causing significant transport disruption. Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, Sri Lanka is grappling with catastrophic flooding after being deluged by extreme rainfall.
Arctic Blast and Power Cuts in Poland
This week, a dramatic temperature drop swept across eastern Europe. The Alpine regions saw the mercury fall as low as -20°C, while the Polish town of Zakopane in the Tatras Mountains recorded a frigid -8.5°C.
The cold snap was accompanied by heavy snowfall, with a central swathe of Poland receiving 15-20cm of snow and southern areas near the mountains being buried under more than 40cm. This occurred as an area of low pressure moving from the Balkans collided with bitterly cold Arctic air stationed over the country.
The sheer volume of snow had immediate and severe consequences. Emergency services were stretched thin, with Polish firefighters responding to 2,900 callouts. The most significant impact was felt in the city of Rzeszów, where 75,000 homes were left without power.
Transport Chaos and International Fallout
The extreme weather also wreaked havoc on transport networks. At an airport, an Embraer E170STD aircraft, which can carry up to 80 passengers, veered off the runway onto a grass verge. The incident happened on a flight from Warsaw, Poland, to Vilnius, Lithuania.
This led to air traffic being delayed for several hours, and the aircraft's return flight was unable to depart, causing further travel disruption for passengers.
Deadly Flooding and Mudslides in Sri Lanka
As Poland froze, Sri Lanka faced a weather crisis of a different kind. The island nation was hit by extreme rainfall, with more than 250mm falling in a 24-hour period in many areas. This is particularly significant as Sri Lanka's average rainfall for the entire month of November is typically between 250mm and 300mm.
The result was widespread flooding and devastating mudslides. The disaster has thus far claimed 40 lives, with a further 10 people injured. Authorities report that 425 homes have been damaged by mudslides, and 1,800 families are now being housed in temporary shelters.
The mountainous tea-growing regions were tragically affected. Eighteen of the fatalities occurred in the areas of Badulla and Nuwara Eliya, located 300km east of the capital, Colombo.
The Science Behind the Sri Lankan Deluge
The unique topography of these highland regions intensified the rainfall through a process known as orographic enhancement. Here is a simplified breakdown of how it works:
- Moist air clouds are forced to rise over mountains.
- The rising air cools until it reaches its dew point and condenses, forming orographic clouds.
- Pre-existing rain from higher clouds falls through these lower orographic clouds.
- The droplets bind together in a process called accretion, creating larger, heavier raindrops.
- This leads to significantly higher rainfall totals in mountainous areas compared to lower-lying ground.
With more rain forecast for Sri Lanka in the coming days, the situation remains critical for many communities.
