– And finally, ladies and gentlemen, an important memory for us – said Anita Werner after the last material and the invitation to “Facts after facts”. – It’s been nine years since they’ve been gone. Our colleague from the editorial office Darek Kmiecik, his wife Brygida and son Remek – she added. The lights dimmed and became quiet in the “Fakty” studio, and behind the presenter a board with a black and white photo of the tragically deceased trio appeared on the screen.
“Fakty” reporter Dariusz Kmiecik, his wife – also a journalist – Brygida Frosztęga-Kmiecik and their son Remigiusz died on October 23, 2014. At 4.50 a.m., an explosion occurred in a tenement house on Chopina Street in Katowice, where 25 people lived. The front wall was damaged, along with three floors of the building. 150 firefighters took part in the rescue operation. Unfortunately, they found the body of a man in the rubble, followed by a woman and a two-year-old. It was confirmed that it was the Kmiecik family.
Dariusz Kmiecik and Brygida Frosztęga-Kmiecik met through work
– Two different personalities attracted each other. Darek – a gun, very specific, careful and Brydzia – who believes that through journalism you can help people, quite an artistic soul, perfect for reporting – said Marianna Durczok, a journalist from TVP Katowice, whose words were quoted by “Gazeta Wyborcza”. The couple met at the beginning of their professional path. – They both started working on television at the same time. – It was the end of the 1990s, maybe the beginning of 2000. Brydzia was still studying and came for an internship. Darek too. After some time, it was clear that these were not random trainees. They were able to listen, draw conclusions, and learned quickly – in “Gazeta Wyborcza” Iwona Flanczewska, head of “Aktualności”, the TVP Katowice news program.
Brygida Frosztęga-Kmiecik worked at the TVP center in Katowice and dealt with reportage, her husband was the Silesian correspondent of “Fakty” for eight years. – She was a good person, she believed that a journalist’s mission was to help others. And so she did. Her husband Darek worked at “Fakty” TVN. Perfectionist. He loved football and mountains – nine years after the death of Dorota Roman in “Gazeta Wyborcza”. Kmiecik was also passionate about Himalayan mountaineering – for his reportage “Artur Hajzer. Subjectively” about a climber who died on the Gaszerbrum I slope, he received the second prize and the audience award at the 11th Krakow Mountain Film Festival. She, in turn, won the main prize in the regional Silesia Press competition for her reportage “The Persistent Desire for Life”, and her “Another Film” was nominated for the Złoty Lajkonik award.
They chose the tenement house in the center consciously because they did not want to live somewhere on the outskirts of Katowice, and – as their friends recalled – they were happy with the progress of the renovation. When arranging the interiors, they eagerly used Silesian design elements. At the time of her death, she was only 33 years old and he was 34.
It has been nine years since the explosion in Katowice
Five people were injured in the 2014 explosion, including 45-year-old Mariusz P., who was taken to the Burn Treatment Center in Siemianowice Śląskie in a serious condition. Doctors fought for his life for several days, but he died. The investigation showed that it was he who caused the tragedy.
– This man intentionally unscrewed elements of the gas installation in the bathroom of his apartment, which was located on the second floor of the tenement house. As a result, there was a gas explosion, fire and the collapse of part of the building. The evidence shows that this man’s actions were aimed at causing an explosion. The ongoing investigation excluded the involvement of people other than this man, said Marta Zawada-Dybek from the Katowice prosecutor’s office, quoted by “Fakt”. P.’s mother had been taken to a care facility a few days earlier, and the day after the explosion he was to be evicted without the right to social housing.
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
