In September 2024, Lądek-Zdrój was hit by a huge flood, changing the fate of many buildings and their inhabitants. Among the most affected buildings was a 19th-century tenement house standing at 44 Kościuszki Street, located right on the banks of the Biała Lądecka River. More than a year has passed since those tragic events, but the housing community is still seeking funds, consents and solutions to start rebuilding the damaged house.
Flood of 15 September 2024
The flood wave that passed through Lądek-Zdrój on 15 September 2024 was a consequence of the breach of the dam on the Młynówka River. The scale of the phenomenon surprised residents, who compared it to the dramatic events of 1997, pointing out that the current damage was even more severe. After the water subsided, a picture of the city emerged with broken bridges, damaged roads, a devastated market square and broken windows in many buildings. The tenement house at the corner of Paderewskiego and Kościuszki Streets was in the direct reach of the element. The pressure of the water washed away the structure of the building, leading to the collapse of one of the walls and the creation of an extensive breach in the body of the building. Residents were forced to evacuate immediately, leaving their flats and possessions visible later through the damaged façade.
History of the tenement house at 44 Kościuszki Street
The tenement house was built in 1882 on a corner plot adjacent to the riverbed. The two-storey building received a representative neo-Baroque design. Its form is shaped by a mansard roof, a decorative entrance portal and rich cornices. Over the years, some of the balconies have been rebuilt and simplified. At the beginning of the 20th century, the building belonged to Max Preis. In the 1920s it housed a shop and publishing house run by Ferdinand Koelbel. From 1924 to 1942, the building was owned by the dentist August Hoheisel. After the end of the war, the building was taken over by the city and later came under the management of a housing association. In the following decades, the building housed, among others, a branch of PTTK, a textile shop and an Orbis outlet.
Interrupted renovation and consequences of flooding
Immediately prior to the flooding, the community began renovating the façade. Plaster was removed in the ground floor area, a design was prepared and scaffolding was erected. The work included insulation, damage repairs, new plastering and painting. A loan of around PLN 500 000 was taken out for this purpose. The cataclysm of September 2024 interrupted the investment. Water tore down the scaffolding attached to the walls, and the basement, where the contractor stored building materials and tools, was completely flooded. All equipment was swept away by the river current. As a result, the community was left with a debt and a building in need of even more urgent renovation.
44 Kościuszki Street – securing the building after the flood
From the day of the disaster, the residents and the community’s management made efforts to secure the damaged building as quickly as possible. To this end, requests were made to post-flood services, the city authorities and other institutions, seeking all forms of support. The process of obtaining the required approvals and preparing the security design ultimately took several months. In the end, the work to cover the breach and protect the entire structure from further degradation was carried out to a design by Ireneusz Pacan’s company. The cost of the documentation, permits and works amounted to PLN 60,000 and was covered entirely from community funds.
Insurance problems and limited support
Shortly after reporting the damage to the insurance companies, homeowners started receiving refusals. In four out of six cases, the insurers found that the policies did not cover damage caused by flooding and groundwater impact. Appeals filed individually by community members have not resulted in a change of position. However, the owners are not laying down their arms and plan to appeal further against what they consider to be damaging decisions. Fortunately, the separate policy taken out by the community for the entire building has been fulfilled. The amount paid out allowed the repayment of a previous loan obligation to the bank. However, this meant a reduction in the funds available to rebuild the damaged tenement. Some of the residents also received flood benefits, including emergency assistance and benefits for the repair of their dwellings. The maximum amount of support was PLN 140 000 per person. However, current regulations do not allow these funds to be used for work on the common parts of the building, which creates another obstacle.
Grant applications and the decision to rebuild
The community took advantage of the municipal support programme proposed by the mayor of Ladek-Zdrój, receiving PLN 100,000. Another attempt to obtain funds was to participate in the call announced on 2 October 2025 by the Lower Silesian Provincial Conservator of Monuments. The regulations provided for support only for objects entered in the provincial register of monuments, while the tenement house at 44 Kościuszki Street is only listed in the communal register. However, the management of the community decided to submit an application, taking into account the risk of rejection and planning further action against public institutions. At one meeting, the residents adopted a resolution to rebuild the house. An architectural bureau led by Cyprian Najduch was selected to design the reconstruction of the damaged wall. The price was PLN 175,000, which again put a strain on the community’s budget. The estimated cost of reconstructing the entire building according to the design documentation is approximately PLN 2.5 million.
Funding search and legal action
In the course of the search for financial support, representatives of the community held talks with the Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego. Previously, there had been information about a planned preferential loan for flood victims, assuming that a significant part of the liability would be written off upon completion of the investment. After consultations, it emerged that the programme had not been prepared and it is unclear whether it will be launched at all. The community is currently monitoring local and government announcements, sending applications and letters to various institutions in the hope of obtaining additional grants. In parallel, the law firm of Dariusz Szczepaniuk has been hired to represent the community in proceedings against the State Treasury and Polish Water for compensation for the damage.
Uncertain future of the tenement house at 44 Kościuszki Street
At this stage, the community does not have the resources to fully implement the reconstruction project. The most likely scenario is to start the first stage of the works with the available funds. It assumes tidying up the basement and rebuilding the ceilings and damaged wall. Other elements, such as the staircase, installations, façade, balconies and insulation, will have to wait. The building has remained closed since the day of the flood, so residents have no access to their premises. This makes it impossible to assess the damage and plan repairs to private dwellings. At the same time, the funds allocated in the form of targeted benefits must be used by the end of October 2026. The future of the tenement house at 44 Kościuszki Street in Lądek-Zdrój therefore depends on the pace of the securing work, the decisions of the authorities and the effectiveness of further efforts to finance the reconstruction.
Source: kudowa-zdroj.kresy.org.pl, housing community materials
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Lądek-Zdrój, tenement house before and after the flood. Photo: Google Maps and Tomasz Kalinowski
The building before September 2024 and today. Source: Google Maps and Rafał Krych
