The two major fires in Split-Dalmatia County, one in Tucepi on the Makarska Riviera and the other in Vrsine near the town of Trogir, have not yet been extinguished, as confirmed by the County Fire and Rescue Service Operations Centre in the town of Split.

In Tucepi, 306 firefighters with 77 vehicles have been trying to contain the fire in the open area since Tuesday evening. The fire, which was fuelled by the wind, has spread to the Biokovo Nature Park and reached Podgora, where residents were evacuated from their homes to a school yesterday evening. So far, around 400 hectares of scrubland, low vegetation and pine forest have been burnt in the area.

The fire broke out again in the hamlets above Tucepi, including Lalici, Viskovici, Simici and Sarici. Goran Buselic, commander of the Tucepi volunteer fire brigade, says that the fires have broken out again in five to six places: “Everything has flared up again. We are waiting for tankers to arrive because we do not have enough of them, and the firefighting equipment has been burnt, including helmets, boots and hoses.”

Canadairs are also fighting the fire in the Tucepi area.

Police have completed the investigation into the fire near the village of Vrsine in the municipality of Marina, Split-Dalmatia County. It has been established that the source of the fire was at a rubbish dump along the road and that the fire was caused by the spontaneous combustion of various waste materials, including broken glass and mirrors. So far, no evidence of a criminal offence has been found in the incident, reports the Split-Dalmatia police.

In view of the still active fires in inaccessible areas, the Biokovo Nature Park will remain closed to visitors until Monday.