A wildfire along the Croatian coastline has killed at least one person and injured approximately 40 others after breaking out Thursday evening. The fire started near the village of Lokva Rogoznica and moved toward the tourist town of Omis, fanned by strong winds. Officials reported that the blaze spread across 1,000 hectares (2,471 acres) within a four-hour period.
The fire occurred during a summer of high temperatures and dry conditions affecting multiple European countries. The flames traveled through pine forests on hillsides, reaching villages near the Adriatic city of Split. Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic reported that 1,200 residents and tourists were evacuated as the fire caused extensive damage to homes and vehicles.
Emergency services deployed more than 300 firefighters, who faced challenges including gale-force winds and abandoned vehicles blocking access roads. Croatia's fire chief, Slavko Tucakovic, stated that 10 people were in intensive care and described the event as one of the most severe in the nation's history. Search teams discovered a body in a burnt-out area on Friday.
The scale of the fire has strained regional emergency resources, requiring the opening of multiple emergency shelters along the coast. Similar conditions are affecting other European nations, with 200 people evacuated in Greece, 500 in France, and 2,000 in Germany due to concurrent blazes. This indicates a broader regional challenge for fire services and public safety agencies managing multiple large-scale incidents during the same period.
In the immediate future, emergency services will continue searching the affected zones for further casualties or damage. While the Prime Minister visited the site on Friday to assess the situation, officials have not yet provided a specific date for when evacuated residents may return to their homes or when the damaged infrastructure will be cleared. The high-risk wildfire conditions remain a concern for millions across Europe, including in the United Kingdom, where emergency alerts were issued on Friday.