Storm Alert: Poland — when and where a thunderstorm is coming
Check the storm for your town →
Recently added — storms
- Storms in Europe — radar, alerts and what to do
- Storms in the Italian Alps — why they arrive so suddenly
- Hail during Alpine storms — how often it falls and why it is dangerous
- Storm alerts in Croatia — will they reach a tourist, and where to shelter
- Sudden storms and downpours in France — the regions hit most often
Current storm situation in Poland
The map below shows near-real-time precipitation and lightning radar. Switch to the warnings layer to check whether an official bulletin has already been issued for your region.
Storm radar — Poland
By default you see the precipitation radar together with real-time lightning strikes — one combined Windy layer. Switch to wind or to the warnings layer to see whether an official warning is in effect for this region.
To check the exact forecast for a specific town — what time a storm is due and how long it will last — use this site's storm tool, based on the ICON-D2 model at 2km resolution.
Why southern Poland gets the most violent storms
Poland's most intense storms, often bringing hail and localised tornadoes, occur in Lesser Poland (Małopolska), the Subcarpathian region and Silesia — warmer, moist air pushing up from the south meets the Carpathians there, which force it upward, much as happens with Bavaria on the German side of the border.
Poland also remembers an extreme storm event — on the night of 11–12 August 2017, a massive derecho (a large, long-lived storm system with destructive wind) swept through the north and east of the country, flattening huge areas of forest in the Tuchola Forest and around Suwałki, with tragic accidents at scout camps. That event changed how Polish authorities treat warnings for severe wind-driven storms.
Poland's storm season runs from May to September, peaking in July — exactly when most people are on holiday, in the mountains or at campsites by the water.
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What a thunderstorm is and how to read the signal strength
What a thunderstorm is and how to read its strength
A thunderstorm forms when warm, moist air near the ground rises quickly and meets much colder air higher up. That motion (convection) builds a storm cloud (cumulonimbus) — sometimes over ten kilometres tall. Inside it, water droplets and ice crystals collide and build up an electrical charge, which eventually discharges as lightning.
A storm needs three things at once: moisture in the lower atmosphere, instability (a large temperature difference between the ground and higher up), and some trigger for the air to start rising — a weather front, ground heated hard on a hot day, or mountains forcing air upward.
How to read the storm-signal strength
Weather models (like ICON-D2, used on this site) do not "see" lightning directly — they calculate a Lightning Potential Index (LPI) from the physics of the cloud: how much ice and supercooled water is rising, how strong the updraft is. Rainfall and convective energy (CAPE) are added on top — together they give one index from 0–100%.
- 0–20% — calm, no real storm signal.
- 20–30% — weak signal, a passing shower is possible, a storm is unlikely.
- 30–45% — a real chance of a storm, worth tracking as it develops.
- 45%+ — a strong signal, a storm with a high chance of lightning.
This is a model forecast, not a radar reading — it shows what the model expects a few hours ahead, not what is happening right now. For the current situation, always check radar too (e.g. in this site's storm tool) and official warnings.
Wind and weather — Europe
Wind direction and speed decide which way a fire runs. Switch the layer to temperature or humidity to judge the risk.
Strong wind, temperatures above 35 °C and humidity below 30% together are the conditions in which fire spreads fastest.
IMGW-PIB warnings and the RSO system
Weather warnings — Poland
This site shows a model forecast and does not replace official warnings. If IMGW-PIB has issued a warning for your region, that is what counts — not our forecast.
Check warnings: IMGW-PIB ↗ · MeteoAlarm — warnings for all of Europe ↗
IMGW-PIB (the Institute of Meteorology and Water Management) issues warnings on three levels: level 1 (possible danger), level 2 (serious danger) and level 3 (extreme danger to life and health). Warnings cover specific counties (powiaty), not the whole of Poland at once.
Poland's Government Security Centre (RCB) sends weather alerts via Cell Broadcast — the notification reaches every phone in the affected area automatically, with no app required, as long as the phone has system notifications enabled.
What to do once a storm is close
If you're in the Tatra Mountains, the Bieszczady, or at a campsite on the Baltic coast and IMGW has issued a level 2 or 3 warning:
- Get off ridges and summits before midday — those are the highest points around and where lightning strikes most often.
- Don't pitch a tent under lone trees or on high ground.
- At a campsite by the water — head back to shore at the first signs of an approaching storm, don't wait for the first thunder.
- Check RCB alerts — they reach your phone automatically, but make sure system notifications are enabled.
We've covered a full, general storm safety guide — at home, in the car, in the mountains and on the water — in a separate article.
All storm pages
- Storms in Europe — radar, alerts and what to do
- Storms in the Italian Alps — why they arrive so suddenly
- Hail during Alpine storms — how often it falls and why it is dangerous
- Storm alerts in Croatia — will they reach a tourist, and where to shelter
- Sudden storms and downpours in France — the regions hit most often
- Storms in Croatia and local flooding — Dubrovnik, Split, Zadar
- Storms in France: Paris, Marseille, Nice and lightning protection
- When will storms hit Australia — checking the hour for your town
- When will storms hit the USA — checking the hour for your town
- When will the storm end in Australia — duration and the all-clear
- When will the storm end in the USA — duration and the all-clear
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- What to Do During a Thunderstorm — the Complete Safety Guide
- When will there be a storm in South East England? London, Kent, Essex
- When will there be a storm in Scotland? Glasgow, Edinburgh, Highlands
- When will there be a storm in the Midlands? Birmingham, Nottingham, Leicester
- Storm Alert: UK — when and where a thunderstorm is coming
- Storm Alert: Germany — when and where a thunderstorm is coming
- Storm Alert: France — mistral, Cévennes episodes and Météo-France