Massive Wildfire Rages on Croatia's Dugi Otok Island

A large wildfire has broken out on the Croatian island of Dugi Otok, spreading through hard-to-reach terrain covered in dense scrub. According to Matej Rudić, head of the fire service in the city of Zadar, the flames are threatening residential buildings in the area, some of which urgently need protection.

According to Croatian broadcaster HRT, the situation had eased somewhat by Saturday morning, with firefighters managing to shield all homes from the blaze. Rudić said crews worked through the night to keep the fire from destroying property.

A Hundred Firefighters and Air Support

Around a hundred firefighters are battling the flames, backed up from the air by water-dropping planes. Local crews from Dugi Otok itself have been joined by reinforcements sent from mainland Croatia.

"We managed to split the fire into two fronts, and now we're working to contain them with the help of water-bombing aircraft," the Zadar fire chief explained.

Flare-ups in Other Areas Too

Overnight on Saturday, fires also broke out in the areas of Galovac, Prkos, Zemunik, and elsewhere across Zadar County. By Saturday morning, all of these blazes had reportedly been extinguished.

News of the fire on Dugi Otok came shortly after reports of a major blaze in the Croatian resort town of Omiš, from which around 300 Czechs had to be evacuated.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz