Seven-Day Wildfire on Croatia's Čiovo Island Finally Extinguished

After seven days of intense struggle, firefighters have finally extinguished a wildfire that blazed across the island of Čiovo in Croatia. The fire, which ignited on the last day of June in Žedno, consumed an estimated 120 hectares of land, including grass, low vegetation, and forest.

Firefighters from Trogir, Kaštela, Split, Solin, and Omiš battled the flames, supported by Canadair aircraft that helped suppress the fire, which was fanned by intermittent strong winds. The fire was localized on the seventh day, followed by three days of intensive work on soaking and securing the terrain before it was officially declared out on Friday evening.

A total of 150 firefighters, operating with approximately fifty vehicles, were involved in the operation. They utilized a drone to monitor the fire site. In addition to vegetation, several agricultural and auxiliary structures were damaged as the fire encroached dangerously close to populated areas. However, firefighters managed to defend the inhabited houses.

The fire is believed to have been caused by lightning during a severe storm that struck the area on the last day of June. Following the localization of the fire, patrols and rehabilitation of the burned area were organized.