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2007 Croatian coast fires
Reference material by Wikipedia contributors. This retains its source identity and is not 411 news reporting.
Series of wildfires in Croatia
May 2014
right|thumb|300px|A devastating forest fire in Istria
The 2007 Croatian coast fires (hr Požari u Hrvatskoj 2007) were a series of fires that struck the Croatian coast in the summer of 2007. After a heat wave, which covered Southern and Eastern Europe, resulting drought and southern winds helped spread the fires all over the Croatian coast, destroying a large part of vulnerable plant and animal life.http://www.h-alter.org/tekst/radikalizacija-kljuca-ispod-povrsine/3824 ŠTO ZNA PTICA ŠTO JE POŽAR - Ekologija - H-Alter 2007-08-17 https://archive.today/20120802141250/http://www.h-alter.org/tekst/radikalizacija-kljuca-ispod-povrsine/3824 2012-08-02 dead
There were 750 fires on the coast from 1 June to 8 August. They burned in Istria County, Zadar County, Šibenik-Knin County, Split-Dalmatia County and Dubrovnik-Neretva County. The total burned area covered 159,000 hectares.
The police indicted 18 persons and arrested 12 for arson. Those arrested included an unnamed 56-year-old suspected of setting seven fires and some shepherds who burned grass for sheep.http://dnevnik.hr/naslovnica/vijesti/hrvatska/20070807_22737.php?Ari=1i7 Zbog požara u Divulje dodatne policijske snage - Dnevnik.hr https://archive.today/20080205064437/http://dnevnik.hr/naslovnica/vijesti/hrvatska/20070807_22737.php?Ari=1i7 5 February 2008 dead When fires broke out in the region of Dubrovnik, the local authorities accused the Herzegovinian town of Trebinje of deliberately setting fires. Tragedy struck when, of the 23 firefighters sent to a burning island of Kornat, 12 were killed by fast moving brush fires,NK Dračice Đakovo https://fr-fr.facebook.com/nkdracice/posts/1083322168484287 2020-11-24 fr-fr.facebook.com fr one was severely injured, and ten were forced to leave before they could extinguish the blaze themselves.30 August 2019 Remembering Kornati Tragedy 12 Years On https://total-croatia-news.com/lifestyle/kornati-tragedy-3/ 2020-11-24 www.total-croatia-news.com en-gb
Fires in Istria
right|thumb|300px|Fire near Pula
On 19 July, a fire broke out near Pula. The Croatian Automobile Club reported that the Pula-Premantura county road had to be closed in the section from the Banjole crossroads to Premantura.
On 27 July, ten new fires broke out in the Istrian region. Two large fires–near the Pineta Trailer Park in Peroj near Pula and near the Amarin Trailer Park in Rovinj–were soon localized.http://www.totalportal.hr/index.php?article_id=120317 TotalPortal 2007-08-17 https://web.archive.org/web/20071023044233/http://www.totalportal.hr/index.php?article_id=120317 2007-10-23 dead
On 7 August, there was a fire between Batvači, Peroj and Barbariga, in the municipality of Vodnjan. It was localized around 7:30 PM by a Canadair CL-415 airplane and a helicopter that started extinguishing the fire around 6 PM. The fire, which was spreading because of the wind and the unapproachable terrain, was extinguished by 90 firefighters and 22 fire engines. The fire burned 80 hectares of forests and brush.http://business.hr/Default2.aspx?ArticleID=d8319ea0-9015-453d-a41f-26bf659f9fd2&ref=rss&gid=182615 Business.hr - Kanader spriječio širenje požara u Istri 2007-08-17 https://web.archive.org/web/20070928221004/http://business.hr/Default2.aspx?ArticleID=d8319ea0-9015-453d-a41f-26bf659f9fd2&ref=rss&gid=182615 2007-09-28 dead
Fires in Dalmatia
There were several fires in Dalmatia in July and August. The first fire broke out in the afternoon of 26 July, on Veliki Rujan, which is right next to the Paklenica National Park. The most endangered area was the southeast part of the National Park. The fire was fought by more than 200 firemen, National Park employees and members of the Croatian Army. The firemen received reinforcements during the next days. There were also two firefighting planes and a helicopter. A fire broke out on the Svilaja Mountain, but it was soon localized.http://www.index.hr/vijesti/clanak/pozar-kod-nacionalnog-parka-paklenica-jos-uvijek-aktivan/354356.aspx Požar kod Nacionalnog parka Paklenica još uvijek aktivan Index.hr 17 July 2018
The fire near Podstražje, a village by the Rukavac Cove on the island of Vis, was localized on 7 August by the professionals and volunteers from Vis and Komiža, with 46 firemen and nine fire engines. The August fire near Lake Vrana was soon localized.
On 8 August, a fire broke out around Žitnić, spreading to the mined area along the Šibenik-Drniš state road, which was closed for traffic. 21 professional and volunteer firemen and six fire engines from Drniš fought it.https://www.index.hr/clanak.aspx?id=354101 U Hrvatskoj, BiH i Srbiji gori nekoliko požara Index.hr 17 July 2018
Kornati tragedy
yes section February 2013
thumb|300px|Kornati in May 2003
On 30 August, a new fire broke out on the island of Kornat, part of the Kornati National park. A team of 23 firemen was sent on an Mi-8 helicopter on what they thought would be just a routine mission. Upon arrival, they split into two teams, one with six firemen and the other with 17. The latter split up one more time when three firemen lost their communication gear, and again when the fourth one went checking for the signal while trying to call his superiors. The remaining 13 were stranded between two hills with no water whatsoever, since the large water canister landed 500 meters away from them. While searching for it, they got encircled by a wall of fire. Although the burning grass was only 10 cm tall, the firemen did not have the necessary equipment and had nowhere to run. In only a minute, six of them were killed instantly, while the other seven remained lying on the ground, badly burned, waiting for help for more than two hours. After the rescue, they were sent to the hospital in Zadar and then transferred to hospitals in Zagreb and Split. Six of them died due to serious burns covering large areas of their bodies. The fire itself had nowhere to spread, and was soon naturally extinguished, bringing up many questions about the necessity of the intervention. Allegedly, the firemen were killed by an unexploded CBU-87 dumped over Kornat by NATO planes returning from the Kosovo War in 1999.http://dalje.com/hr-hrvatska/slucaj-kornati--vatrogasci-stradali-od-prirodne-pojave-rijetkih-fenomena/447537 Slučaj Kornati: Vatrogasci stradali od prirodne pojave rijetkih fenomena - Vijesti - Aktualno - Hrvatska - Dalje.com 2012-11-06 https://web.archive.org/web/20121206005950/http://dalje.com/hr-hrvatska/slucaj-kornati--vatrogasci-stradali-od-prirodne-pojave-rijetkih-fenomena/447537 2012-12-06 dead http://www.tportal.hr/vijesti/crnakronika/189273/Opuskom-izazavo-pozar-u-kojem-su-poginuli-vatrogasci.html#.UJmBvGe59_M Opuškom izazvao požar u kojem su poginuli vatrogasci? Tportal.hr 17 July 2018http://www.tportal.hr/vijesti/crnakronika/145396/Lucic-Na-Kornatu-je-eksplodirala-odbacena-bomba-NATO-a.html#.UJmCBGe59_M Lučić: Na Kornatu je eksplodirala odbačena bomba NATO-a Tportal.hr 17 July 2018
Fires around Dubrovnik
On 5 August, several fires broke out in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County. At 10 PM, the sirens sounded the general alarm because the fire came close to the city of Dubrovnik itself. Mayor of Dubrovnik, Dubravka Šuica, called all the able men to help the firemen. A shelter for women, children and old people was made in the Revelin Fortress. The firemen from the Split-Dalmatia County and the Šibenik-Knin County helped fight the fire.http://dnevnik.hr/bin/article.php?article_id=22682 Dnevnik.hr - Foto: Sablastan prizor nad Dubrovnikom Dnevnik.hr 17 July 2018 5 February 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20080205064416/http://dnevnik.hr/bin/article.php?article_id=22682 dead The fire spread to Žarkovica, a couple of hundred meters from the first city houses.http://radiodubrovnik.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5134&Itemid=1 Hr Radio Dubrovnik 2007-08-17 https://web.archive.org/web/20070927175400/http://radiodubrovnik.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5134&Itemid=1 2007-09-27 dead On the other side, the fire reached Komolac and endangered the main power station. The state road was closed in the section from Konavle to Zaton, so the drivers there had to spend the night waiting on the road. The most desperate situation was around Mokošica, where the 20-kilometer fire came down to the houses, burning one house in Šumet.
On 8 August, a forest fire broke out in the municipality of Konavle. It was fought by the county firemen and the state intervention forces of Dubrovnik, with 50 firemen and 15 fire engines. They were helped by three Canadair CL-415 airplanes and an Air Tractor. Firefighting was made more difficult by the strong wind and drought. July 2018 Some tourists were evacuated from local hotels.
The fires near Dubrovnik were well-publicized by international media.https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6932578.stm Dubrovnik fire threat subsiding 6 August 2007 News.bbc.co.uk 17 July 2018https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/talking_point/6933131.stm Dubrovnik fires: Your experiences 6 August 2007 17 July 2018 News.bbc.co.uk
International accusations of arson
On 6 August and 7 August, Prime Minister Ivo Sanader visited Dubrovnik, which was followed by fires in that area. It prompted some county officials to make arson accusations against the nearby town of Trebinje in the neighboring Bosnia and Herzegovina. Mario Magud, the firefighting commander in Konavle, said: "There are no firemen on the Trebinje side. Everything indicates that they set the fire themselves with the intention to burn Konavle and beyond. It's not a coincidence that, as soon as we localize one fire, a new fire breaks out."http://vecernji.hr:80/newsroom/news/croatia/2315760/index.do https://web.archive.org/web/20071012091737/http://vecernji.hr/newsroom/news/croatia/2315760/index.do dead 2007-10-12 ČETVRTI DAN Vatrena stihija na jugu Hrvatske : Strahote požara oko Dubrovnika režirane u Trebinju? 12 October 2007 17 July 2018 Luka Korda, the chief of Konavle municipality, made similar accusations. The Herzegovinian civil defense secretary Stanko Slišković said it was not true that the Herzegovinian firemen did not do anything to prevent fires in the border area near Dubrovnik: "Our people made the greatest effort to fight every fire where it was possible. Nobody can say with certainty where a fire started... I'm sorry this happened and I understand the indignation of the citizens of Dubrovnik, but it's not our fault." He claimed that the Herzegovinian civil defense cooperated well with their Croatian counterparts and said that the Herzegovinian forces could not fight the fires in the inaccessible or mined areas.http://www.bljesak.info/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=49614 https://web.archive.org/web/20070929133844/http://www.bljesak.info/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=49614 dead 29 September 2007 bljesak.info - CZ FBiH: Nismo krivi za požare u Hrvatskoj! 29 September 2007 17 July 2018
See also
2007 Greek forest fires
2007 European heat wave
References
Further reading
December 2019 n.s. U Bakru obilježena 12. obljetnica kornatske tragedije 28 Nazovi 193 12 24 https://www.vz-pgz.hr/upload/pdf/Nazovi_193_br_24.pdf 2022-09-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20220927182134/https://www.vz-pgz.hr/upload/pdf/Nazovi_193_br_24.pdf hr 110 Years of DVD Čabar
External links
TotalPortal.hr – 600 fires in Croatia in 20 days https://web.archive.org/web/20071010041932/http://www.totalportal.hr/index.php?article_id=119134 2007-10-10 hr
TotalPortal.hr New fires in Dalmatia https://web.archive.org/web/20080205101721/http://www.totalportal.hr/index.php?article_id=122478 2008-02-05 hr
http://www.nacional.hr/articles/view/36538/ Nacional (weekly) Požari i dalje haraju; Vlada kupuje još kanadera Croatian Fires rage on; Government purchases more firefighting planes Martina Zeković 30 July 2007 30 June 2012 2012-07-17 https://web.archive.org/web/20120717003515/http://www.nacional.hr/clanak/36538/pozari-i-dalje-haraju-vlada-kupuje-jos-kanadera dead
Dnevnik.hr – A couple of suspects https://web.archive.org/web/20080205064411/http://dnevnik.hr/bin/article.php?article_id=21961 2008-02-05 for the Šolta fire hr
Večernji list – Fires near Makarska, Dubrovnik, Kašteli and Krka National Park hr
Category:Wildfires caused by arson
Category:Arson in Croatia
Category:Fires in Croatia
Croatian fires
Croatian fires
Category:History of Dalmatia
Category:Modern history of Croatia
Category:July 2007 in Europe
Category:August 2007 in Europe
Category:2007 disasters in Croatia
Category:Arson in 2007
Category:Wildfires in Europe