On Thursday night a wildfire ignited near the village of Lokva Rogoznica and moved southward, reaching the tourist town of Omis within hours. The blaze surged along pine‑lined hills and overwhelmed local fire crews, creating a meteorological drama of smoke and fierce flames.
Croatia’s fire chief Slavko Tucakovic described the fire as one of the country’s worst, noting that 1,000 hectares were consumed in just four hours. The winds, described as gale‑force, fanned the flames across 300 kilometers of coastline, engendering a sky that turned a deep red as residents watched the inferno expand.
In total, one person lost their life while more than forty others sustained injuries. Emergency services evacuated roughly 1,200 residents and tourists, opening shelters along the coast. Ten people were rushed to intensive care, and firefighters had to abandon some vehicles to access the fire zone, a fact highlighted by the commander of the Omis Volunteer Fire Department.
Prime Minister Plenković visited the affected area on Friday, urging calm and recognising the difficulty of the firefighting effort. He stressed that the flames moved at “lightning speed” and that the success of containment was a miracle amid conditions that had already strained national resources.
The blaze is part of a broader series of overwhelming wildfires across Europe, a continent still under the strain of an extreme summer heatwave and dry conditions. While Croatia grapples with the immediate disaster, authorities continue to monitor and prepare for potential new outbreaks along the Adriatic.
