There is an evacuation plan in case of war. They will be the first to be taken away

• Local government officials in the threat area must take action to prepare for evacuation. Their tasks include designating main roads and railway lines and the location of assembly points.
• Similar actions are taken by starosts and voivodes. In times of war, they establish the main roads and railway lines for evacuation. They indicate the means to secure the evacuation and protect property.
• During evacuation, priority is to be given to, among others, children, women and people with special needs. Evacuees should have the means necessary to survive during the journey and stay in the place of temporary shelter.

On Thursday (June 26), the regulation of the Council of Ministers on the detailed method of evacuating the population and securing property comes into force . It assumes, among other things, the extension of tasks that local governments must fulfill.

The preparation of a detailed method for implementing activities related to the evacuation of the population and securing property results from the Act of 5 December 2024 on population protection and civil defense.

The regulation specifies the detailed procedure for the evacuation of people and securing property in the event of an evacuation order for people living in a specified area, in particular from areas threatened by dangers resulting from military operations or natural disasters.

The evacuation of people is carried out taking into account eight factors :

• verification of the population evacuation plan depending on the type of threat and the adopted evacuation directions;
• alerting the staff and evacuation team responsible for organizing and conducting the evacuation;
• informing the population about the ordered evacuation, concentration places and types of means of transport and directions of movement;
• managing the evacuation of people, taking into account the tasks of teams supporting the processes of planning, organizing, coordinating and supervising its course;
• self-evacuation of the population;
• conducting a census of the population, cultural assets and property evacuated by prepared means of transport;
• reception and registration of evacuated people in designated places of temporary stay;
• ensuring a safe return to places of residence.

With regard to securing property, the regulation assumes activities including:

• securing particularly important immovable objects, including monuments designated in the plans for the protection of cultural assets in time of war;
• preparation for the relocation of animals and other most valuable property and previously designated movable cultural goods;
• securing cultural assets against damage during transport, and, if necessary, documenting their condition;
• keeping records, loading, transporting to designated places and unloading and depositing for safe storage.

The regulation also imposes new tasks on local government units - commune heads (mayors, city presidents), starosts and voivodes.

According to the new regulations, the head of a commune (mayor, city president) in a threatened area must immediately take actions related to preparing for evacuation.

Its tasks include, among others , determining the areas of first evacuation, estimating the number of people to be evacuated , including in particular those requiring transport, designating the main roads and railway lines for evacuation and the location of assembly points and their marking.

In addition, he must allocate civil defense resources, means of transport, and also develop a way to secure the most valuable property and cultural assets. He is also responsible for effectively notifying the population, publicizing warning messages and identifying the need for support from higher-level authorities. All of these activities are aimed at ensuring efficient and effective evacuation in the event of an emergency.

Similarly, actions must be taken by starosts and voivodes at higher levels of local government. The voivode cooperates with the director of the Government Security Centre in determining the directions of evacuation and, in time of war, in agreement with the Armed Forces, determines the main roads and railway lines for evacuation.

It indicates the means to secure evacuation and protect property, the persons responsible for coordinating activities, the methods of notifying the population and prepares warning messages.

The Head of Civil Defence, who is the Minister of Interior and Administration, before ordering an evacuation in a specific area, implements processes related to preparing for it, including determining the areas in the country designated as priority for receiving the evacuated population and instructing the voivodes to prepare these places; in consultation with the Director of the Government Security Centre , he designates communication routes to be used during the evacuation and determines the method of effectively notifying the population of the threat , and also prepares the content of information to be made public and announcements for the purpose of alerting the population at risk.

In addition , it identifies needs and determines the scope of required support by other ministers and within the framework of international assistance or the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.

The civil defense body in the area of ​​the province designated to receive the evacuated population determines the number of currently available accommodation places with social and living security, along with their location and capacity, as well as free places in care facilities and places in hospitals. It also determines the availability of means of transport that can be used in the evacuation process and possible roads and railway lines planned for use during the evacuation.

The regulation draws attention to disinformation - when organising the evacuation of people, the relevant body carries out activities to counteract disinformation and the emergence of panic, as well as to limit the uncontrolled movement of people, in particular in directions where the threat occurred.

It was also indicated that during the evacuation of the population, the authorities should try to provide, among other things, joint transport for families, especially mothers with children, people with special needs and their caregivers, as well as elderly people requiring care. Priority should also be given to the evacuation of children, pregnant women, people staying in care facilities, hospitals and other health facilities, as well as people with disabilities or limited mobility.

Another issue is supplies for the evacuation. Evacuees should be provided with the necessary means to survive during the journey and stay in the place of temporary shelter, such as food, medicine, clothing, water, hygiene products and sanitary facilities.

The provisions also assume a limit on the property taken by evacuated people. During evacuation, the property taken should be limited to that which is necessary for survival for 72 hours.