POLAND: Warsaw, Budapest and Slovakia Brace For Flooding; Vistula, Oder, Danube Rising Again.

REUTERS/    Floods have plagued Poland since mid-May and are now overshadowing the 20 June presidential election as weather officials forecast more storms in southern Poland in the coming week. Many Poles are also angry that emergency aid has been delayed because of the upcoming election. Warsaw expects a new flood crest on the Vistula river while Budapest sandbagged against the Danube and Slovakia suffers its worst flood in centuries. Preliminary losses caused by the first wave of floodwater in Poland two weeks ago -  18 lives and 2.5 billion euros. PM Donald Tusk asserted that there was no need to declare a nationwide state of emergency caused by the flooding and  would be taken only with difficulties in evacuating the affected population.

POLAND: 1ST UPDATE: Damage Estimate $2.5 Billion; At Least 15 Dead; Minor Damage In Warsaw.

NEW LINK: REUTERS/ 24 May/       The Vistula River burst its banks in a non-residential area of Warsaw. At least 15 have died from flooding in Poland since last weekend. In Wroclaw, much of one neighborhood, Kozanow, was covered by water after the Oder River broke its banks in two places. Heavy rain has caused damage estimated at more than 2 billion euros ($2.5 billion) over the last week, forcing the evacuation of thousands of people from their homes. Water levels peaked in Warsaw without causing major damage, after soldiers, police and emergency services reinforced sandbag defenses along the banks of the Vistula.

POLAND: New Mosques Bring Fear Of Islam.

REUTERS/ NYTIMES/    A plan to build a mosque and an Islamic cultural center in suburban Warsaw provoked a protest of 150 people. Only about 15,000 to 30,000 Muslims live in Poland, where more than 90% of the 38-million call themselves Catholics. The protestors chanted "Let's not repeat Europe's mistakes" and "Blind tolerance kills common sense," and demanded that Muslim countries respect women's rights and religious freedom.

A Futile Search For Chopin In Poland.

NYTIMES/
“Chopin is our symbol and tourist product but more than that,” said Albert Grudzinski, deputy director of the Chopin Institute, who oversees the competition, “even during Communist times culture was what kept people together here. It was our window to the world.” Chopin spent half his life in Warsaw but there is little left in the city of his presence.

Warsaw Evicts Traders From Free-Market.

From the GlobalPost.com

Police used tear gas to remove protestors from an illegal market in Warsaw's center.