Włodawa County seeks emergency funding for border warning systems

Authorities in Włodawa County, Poland, are requesting financial support from the Ministry of Interior and Administration to strengthen the local public warning system. Currently, only two officials are responsible for 24/7 monitoring of aerial threats, a situation described by Starosta Mariusz Zańko as unsustainable due to extreme exhaustion. The county lacks the funds to hire the minimum of four employees required for proper rotation.

The urgency follows a weekend incident where Russian drone strikes occurred near the Dorohusk border crossing. During this period, one official was on leave, leaving the entire responsibility to a single person. The current system requires officials to travel to the county office to activate radio stations, a process taking up to 30 minutes, as equipment cannot be taken home.

In Dorohusk, local officials noted that while sirens are now remotely activated by the Lublin Voivodeship Crisis Management Center, there were delays in signaling during recent explosions near the border. While provincial authorities maintain that procedures functioned correctly, local leaders emphasize the need for systemic improvements to ensure residents are warned before threats arrive rather than after.