By Isabel Pancake
For information on the poisoner: 210,000 euros reward!
Now the toxic wave from the Oder has also reached Stettin in Poland! BZ on the trail of the Oder disaster.
The fish in Frankfurt (Oder) are still dying on Thursday. A day later, the catastrophe comes to Schwedt! Volunteer fire brigades and volunteers in Brandenburg start collecting the fish at eight o’clock on Saturday morning. No birds should poison themselves with their prey.
On the Polish side, preparations are longer: Marek (30) and his colleagues from the voluntary fire brigade in Krajnik Dolny start fishing on Thursday. Since Friday they have also been out on the river in a small boat.
The voluntary fire brigade in Poland tries to catch the carcasses with a boat Photo: Olaf Wagner
Marek actually works over in Schwedt in pipeline construction and has two days off at the moment. He now spends it with red rubber gloves and a landing net on the banks of the Oder. “It is a disaster. I really hope that the German authorities will clarify this quickly,” he says.
Marek (30) from the voluntary fire brigade from Krajnik Dolny (Poland): “I really hope that the German authorities find out how this could have happened” Photo: Olaf Wagner
The public prosecutor’s office in Germany is investigating the cause, in Poland they even want to help out with money. Anyone who provides helpful information on the possible poison culprit should receive a reward of 210,000 euros!
Marek throws the fish into a container, from where they are supposed to go to an incinerator. According to the Uckermark district administration, the first fish were also burned in a plant in Schwedt on Saturday.
On Friday Mayor Annekathrin Hoppe (SPD) said: “We first have to wait and see what the animals are burdened with. After that, it will be decided where the fish may be burned.” The plausibility check in the laboratory to determine whether it really is mercury is still pending…
The collected fish go into a green container. After that, they are incinerated in a special facility Photo: Olaf Wagner
The Oder poisoning not only has consequences for the environment, but also for the economy. Fisherman Helmut Zahn (65) lives from the sale of the Oder fish and now sees his existence at risk. “The fish will eventually recover from the mercury but will still not be fit for consumption,” he says. His customers are now cautious, even when it comes to purchased sea fish such as redfish. Zahn: “People can’t tell the difference.” Here, too, the fisherman has lost sales of up to 50 percent. “It looks like I’ll have to live off the state later,” he says.
Fischer Helmut Zahn (65) from Schwedt: “Because of this catastrophe I’ll probably have to live on the state later” Photo: Olaf Wagner
On Saturday in Szczecin (Poland), 60 kilometers north of Schwedt: The poison wave is expected. Beach Dziewoklicz Plaża – already closed! “Total bathing ban from August 12 to 18, 2022 due to the pollution of the Oder” is written in Polish on a warning sign. Lifeguard Karol Stanovski (22) should ensure that nobody goes into the water anyway. Stanovski: “Swimming is currently forbidden, but nobody wants to go into the water anyway. Everyone has fear in their heads.”
The city of Szczecin has convened a crisis team. The good news: there are far fewer dead fish here than in Schwedt or Frankfurt (Oder) a few days ago. Only a few fish stray here. Has the poison been diluted that much by now? Possible.
With regard to the impending arrival of the poison wave in the Baltic Sea, Brandenburg’s Environment Minister Axel Vogel (66, Greens) said: “The substance is being diluted more and more. The moment she is in the sea, it’s over anyway.”
The Ministry of the Environment in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania sees things differently: it is already expecting an impact on the Baltic Sea and is asking residents not to fish anything out of the water as a precaution.