Wildfires, Floods and Storms Force Mass Evacuations Across Europe

Wildfires, floods and storms hit Serbia, Bosnia, Spain and Poland simultaneously, burning over 1,600 hectares near Belgrade and prompting thousands of evacuations.

Original report
www.inkl.com

Industry impact

Simultaneous extreme weather across multiple European countries can strain cross-border emergency aviation resources, including firefighting helicopters and water bombers shared between nations.

Europe is facing extreme weather across several countries at once. In Serbia, a wildfire has burned more than 1,600 hectares in the Deliblatska Pescara nature reserve, 60 kilometres east of Belgrade, with the EU sending helicopters and firefighters and a Russian Ilyushin Il-76 water bomber deployed alongside Serbian army helicopters since Thursday. Interior Minister Ivica Dacic called the situation "extremely difficult," with more than 400 personnel deployed daily.

A fire on the Bosnia-Croatia border, which broke out Saturday, has spread across an area more than 16 kilometres in diameter, forcing Bosnian police to close the highway between Trebinje and Dubrovnik and turning back thousands of tourists. Villages near Ivanica were evacuated and some livestock was lost, with Croatian firefighters from Dubrovnik joining Bosnian crews as strong winds and heat pushed the flames inland.

In Spain, more than 145 mm of rain caused flooding in Tarragona that injured 11 people and disrupted road and rail services, while a lightning-sparked wildfire near Segorbe in the Valencia region prompted a Level 2 emergency and the evacuation of more than 1,000 residents from Gatova, with Spain's Military Emergency Unit assisting local firefighters. In Poland, storms since Friday triggered over 6,500 incident responses and the evacuation of twelve scout camps amid floods and power cuts, though Brigadier Karol Kroć of the State Fire Service reported no injuries; yellow warnings remained in place for two northern regions on Sunday.