River Water in Poland Records Lowest Record in More than 70 Years

The Vistula River. (Wikimedia Commons/Tim Adams)

JAKARTA - Poland's largest and longest river, the Vistula, has recorded the lowest water level in more than 70 years at one of the monitoring stations due to drought and heat waves that have hit the country, broadcaster TVP World reported on Thursday.

The country's Institute of Meteorology and Water Management (IMGW) said the Vistula River's water level was recorded at 160 centimeters (5.25 feet) at the Annopol monitoring station, southeast Poland, on Tuesday.

The figure broke the previous record low of 162 centimeters (5.31 feet) recorded more than 70 years ago.

"Currently, there are 71 hydrological drought warnings in force throughout Poland, and their number may increase in the coming days," said Pawel Staniszewski, a hydrologist at IMGW, as quoted by the state news agency PAP, as reported by Anadolu (7/8).

Water levels in the capital, Warsaw, are also approaching an all-time low of 109 centimeters (3.58 feet), close to the minimum record of 104 centimeters (3.41 feet) recorded in August 2025.

"It should be remembered that hydrological droughts usually reach their peak in late August and early September. This means that water levels may continue to fall for the next few weeks," Staniszewski warned.

He said that to reverse the current trend, more than just high rainfall for a few months is needed; it takes a prolonged period of rainfall above average, "which may last for several seasons."

The low water levels have also disrupted power plants, forcing state-owned utility Enea to temporarily halt operations of several units at two coal-fired power plants that rely on water from the Vistula River.