Wildfire kills one person in Croatia as blazes sweep across Europe

Madrid, Aug 14 (EFE).- A wildfire on Croatia’s Adriatic coast claimed one life and left 14 people hospitalized on Friday, as fires continue to sweep across parts of Europe, with outbreaks reported in Spain, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Greece.

The most critical situation remains in Croatia. Out of the 14 injured, seven are in critical condition, due to burns sustained during the massive fire that broke out Thursday night in a tourist area approximately 25 kilometers south of Split.

10 of those hospitalized are in intensive care, with seven of them in life-threatening condition, including a 17-year-old girl who suffered burns over nearly 60% of her body, reported the newspaper Jutarnji list.

Additionally, 10 other people sought medical assistance for respiratory problems caused by smoke inhalation.

Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic reported that approximately 15,000 residents and 12,000 tourists were in the affected area, with at least 2,500 successfully evacuated in an organized operation.

However, according to latest reports, 286 firefighters used 93 fire trucks and four firefighting aircraft to bring under control another fire that razed approximately 1,000 hectares of vegetation, along with dozens of homes, boats, vehicles, and electrical infrastructure.

A new fire also broke out on Friday in Trogir, north of Split, while firefighters continue to battle another blaze on the Peljesac peninsula, about 70 kilometers north of Dubrovnik. Several fires are also reported in neighboring Montenegro.

Greece controls fire

Emergency services managed to contain a fire on Friday that forced the evacuation of at least 446 people on Thursday from the Siviri tourist complex on the Greek peninsula of Halkidiki, local media reported.

Initial estimates place the burned forest area at 400 hectares, though only seven or eight houses and a few vehicles sustained damage.

Authorities suspect that a falling tree onto power lines may have sparked the fire.

Spain, two major outbreaks

In Spain, firefighting efforts focused again on Friday on the two most serious outbreaks, located in Huelva (south) and Huesca (north).

The Huelva fire, one of the most destructive in Andalusia’s history, has affected approximately 38,000 hectares after more than a week of activity. Crews have managed to «corner» the blaze into a single active zone in the eastern sector, the most active area in recent days, meaning the situation is no longer considered «beyond extinguishing capacity.»

Meanwhile, the fire in Las Peñas de Riglos (Huesca), which scorched 10,000 hectares, forced the evacuation of another population center on Friday, bringing the total number of displaced people to 891.

France burns again in the southwest

One week after containing the largest fire in France since 1949, the departments of Gironde and Landes in the southwest faced a new blaze that has razed 1,300 hectares so far, prefect Gilles Clavreul reported on Friday.

Within a few hours, the flames doubled in size, though their advance slowed overnight, which helped prevent further chaos despite the evacuation of 550 people.

The prefect remained cautiously optimistic, noting that weather conditions are evolving favorably.

Buildings destroyed and 20 hospitalized in the UK

A fire that broke out on Friday in Stourbridge, near Birmingham, completely destroyed 19 buildings and left around 50 people affected by smoke and heat, with 20 of them hospitalized.

The fire, which started on Thursday during the hottest day recorded in the country in 2026, razed about 200 hectares of woodland.

Four of those hospitalized are firefighters suffering from heatstroke.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham stated that 37 fires were reported across the country between Thursday and Friday, four of which are considered serious.

More than 2,000 evacuated in Germany An out-of-control fire that has been spreading since Thursday in the Eifel region of western Germany forced the evacuation of over 2,000 people in a municipality near the Belgian border, according to the broadcaster WDR.

The previous day saw three fires in the region; two were brought under control, but the third approached the town of Gey in North Rhine-Westphalia, affecting approximately 300 hectares.

150 people evacuated in eastern Austria A fire that started on Friday in a pine forest in eastern Austria forced the evacuation of a residential area with about 150 residents, with flames coming within just 100 meters, reported public broadcaster ORF.

A total of 84 fire brigades with 700 personnel are fighting to contain the fire in the pine forest of Sankt Egyden am Steinfeld, in the municipality of Neunkirchen (Lower Austria region), about 50 kilometers from the Hungarian border, a fire department spokesperson told the station. EFE

del-tfc/dmv