Commemorative events, including requiem services and wreath-laying ceremonies, were organised on Thursday and Friday in a few coastal towns and on the archipelago of Kornati to mark the 12th anniversary of the death of 12 volunteer firefighters who died while combating a blaze on the island of Kornat on 30 August 2007.

The victims in the tragedy were Dino Klaric, Ivan Marinovic, Marinko Knezevic, Gabrijel Skocic, Karlo Severdija, Hrvoje Strikoman, Ante Juricev Mikulin, Ivica Crvelin, Ante Crvelin, Tomislav Crvelin, Josip Lucic and Marko Stancic. Six were killed on the scene and six later from burns in hospital.

Frane Lucic was the sole survivor.

In mid-March this year the Croatian government and Lucic, who sustained life-threatening injuries in the tragedy, reached a settlement whereby Lucic will be paid HRK 5.5 million in damages and a monthly allowance of HRK 6,000 for disability-related costs and as compensation for lost income.

Despite investigations and trials, the circumstances of the tragedy have not been clarified. The victims’ families and part of the public do not believe the official theory that the tragedy was caused by eruptive fire behaviour, maintaining that the full truth about the circumstances has not been revealed.

Former Sibenik-Knin County fire commander Drazen Slavica, who was the only one to stand trial for the tragedy, was acquitted in the first trial in 2013. The Supreme Court quashed the verdict and ordered a retrial but Slavica was again acquitted in late April 2018.