Wildfires and Floods Strike Serbia, Bosnia, Spain, and Poland in Concurrent European Weather Crisis

Wildfires and flooding hit Serbia, Bosnia, Spain and Poland simultaneously, burning over 1,600 hectares near Belgrade, closing a Bosnian-Croatian border highway, injuring 11 in Tarragona, and triggering over 6,500 emergency callouts in Poland.

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Simultaneous wildfire and flood events across multiple European countries highlight recurring cross-border strain on regional emergency and aerial firefighting resources during peak summer conditions.

Extreme weather is simultaneously disrupting Serbia, Bosnia, Spain and Poland through wildfires and flooding. In Serbia, a vegetation fire has burned more than 1,600 hectares in the Deliblatska Pescara nature reserve near Belgrade, with EU-provided helicopters, a Russian Ilyushin Il-76 water bomber operating since Thursday, and Serbian army helicopters assisting local teams; Interior Minister Ivica Dacic called the situation highly challenging, with more than 400 personnel deployed daily.

At the Bosnia-Croatia border, a fire that ignited Saturday forced closure of the main highway between Trebinje and Dubrovnik, rerouting thousands of tourists, prompting evacuations near Ivanica, and killing some livestock. The blaze spans more than 16 kilometres in diameter across difficult terrain, with Dubrovnik firefighters joining Bosnian crews as heat and wind pushed it further inland; the Trebinje region has seen no rainfall for months.

In Spain, rainfall exceeding 145 mm caused flooding in Tarragona, injuring 11 people, while further storms are forecast for eastern and northeastern Spain and a low-pressure system brings heavy rain to Galicia. A lightning-sparked fire in Segorbe, Valencia region, spread rapidly and triggered a Level 2 emergency, evacuating over 1,000 residents of Gatova, with Spain's Military Emergency Corps joining local firefighters. In Poland, storms since Friday have prompted more than 6,500 emergency callouts and the preventive evacuation of twelve scout camps due to flooding and power outages; Brigadier Karol Kroc of the State Fire Service reported no injuries so far, with further storms forecast for northern Poland on Sunday bringing up to 30 litres per square metre of rain and gusts up to 70 kilometres per hour.