Thousands of people descended on Poland’s winter capital of Zakopane in the Tatra mountains this weekend, following the lifting of some cocoronavirus restrictions by the government on Friday.
There were chaotic scenes on both Friday and Saturday night, reports RMF24, with those gathered in the streets often ignoring requirements to maintain distance and wear masks. Police were forced to intervene around 200 times.
“Over 20,000 people showed up in Zakopane” – whose population of 27,000 is normally swelled by tourists in the winter months – police inspector Sebastian Gleń told website Interia. “We speak to them, caution them, and issue fines.”
On Friday, Poland’s government allowed hotels, ski slopes and various other hospitality, cultural and sports venues to partially reopen. Bars and restaurants, however, remain closed to in-person customers.
The rush of people to Zakopane was also increased by recent snowy weather, Valentine’s Day, and the ski jumping World Cup, which came to the town’s Wielka Krokiew ski jumping hill this weekend (although spectators were not permitted to attend due to restrictions).
According to Zakopane’s mayor, Leszek Dorula, people have massed on the streets because, with restaurants and bars closed, they have “nowhere to sit and release their emotions”.
Zakopane by Night #Zakopane #Tatry #Pandemia Fot. Maciej Jonek pic.twitter.com/kpFO9w3DRE
— Tygodnik Podhalański (@24tp_pl) February 13, 2021
On Friday, the spokesman for the Zakopane police, Roman Wieczorek, said officers had had to intervene “a lot” due to the “tourist invasion”.
“There were many intoxicated people; some had to be picked up straight from the street to keep them from freezing,” he said, quoted by Interia. “[On Friday], we IDed 156 people and intervened 60 times.”
Saturday also saw crowds across the town, with some fights breaking out and a suspected arson attack on a car. The police were forced to intervene 137 times and seven people were detained, with two individuals charged with attacking and insulting police officers.
“Announcements were made from a police car about the need to comply with sanitary requirements,” Wieczorek told RMF24. “We called for social distancing, wearing masks, but groups of people became more and more aggressive and vulgar and posed a danger to other tourists staying in the Tatra Mountains.”
With growing numbers of visitors, police patrols have also recently been established on ski slopes to ensure social distancing measures are followed.
Mayor Dorula said it was “the worst time” for tourists to behave in such a manner, and that he does “not support such celebrations in Zakopane, especially whilst we are fighting the epidemic”.
Krupówki, tłumy, policja, sanie i kolejka do jedynej otwartej mimo zakazu restauracji Góraleczka w Zakopanem #Tatry #Zakopane #covid #pandemia pic.twitter.com/mA4PLnZqzh
— Tygodnik Podhalański (@24tp_pl) February 13, 2021
Paweł Grzesiowski, an immunologist who sits on Poland’s Supreme Medical Council, warned that low temperatures can help the spread of the virus. “The fact that we are free and can travel does not mean that it is safe on the streets,” he told TVN24.
Coronavirus cases in Poland have fallen considerably since peaking at over 20,000 infections a day in November. However, approximately 6,000 new cases are still being reported every day, while deaths also remain high, averaging around 250 a day.
Main image credit: Tygodnik Podhalański (screenshot)
Juliette Bretan is a freelance journalist covering Polish and Eastern European current affairs and culture. Her work has featured on the BBC World Service, and in CityMetric, The Independent, Ozy, New Eastern Europe and Culture.pl.
