Derecho wind storm in Poland on 11–12 August 2017: results of the post-disaster investigation

ABSTRACT

Wind storms belong to the most costly natural hazards in Poland. On 11–12 August 2017, a strong thunderstorm happened, which resulted in catastrophic damage in three provinces: Wielkopolskie, Kujawsko-Pomorskie and Pomorskie. This disaster has resulted in the death of six people, injuries to several dozen people and enormous property losses. The objective of this paper is to describe, analyse and learn from such a dangerous extreme weather event. Examples of buildings, with improved stiffness, are presented as the solution for better resistance of wind forces. The final aim is to help humans prepare for and deal with the consequences of severe wind storms in the future.

KEYWORDS:

• Derecho wind storm
• damage to buildings
• peak wind speeds
• property losses
• buildings to be resistant for extreme winds
• Rescue operations after the disaster

Acknowledgments

We thank all of the individuals from the Communes Brusy, Chojnice, Czersk, the Chief Building Supervision Inspector and groups from Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Wielkopolskie, and Pomorskie province governors who provided us with data concerning damage caused by the derecho wind storm.

The writers also wish to acknowledge the Opole University of Technology and Łódź University of Technology for their support of the project.

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).