Dramatic fight against wildfires; First fatality confirmed; Helicopters join efforts

A 70-year-old man was killed in an open-area fire in Smederevo. According to RTS, a young man who attempted to rescue him suffered burns. The fire occurred in the populated area of Plavinac near Smederevo.

Davor Vidović, assistant head of the Fire and Rescue Units Directorate within the Emergency Management Sector, said the situation is most critical in Deliblato Sands, where the fire has affected 3,500 hectares of forest and low vegetation.

“Residents and property are currently not at risk; we are working to contain the fire. There are currently 345 people involved in firefighting operations at the scene, with 95 vehicles and 37 pieces of heavy machinery. A firefighting boat has even been sent there to supply all those involved in the operation with water,” Vidović said.

He added that, depending on weather conditions during the day, MUP helicopters would likely be deployed again.

Other locations, such as Lake Bovan and Stolovi, are considerably calmer, and significantly better conditions are expected there during the day. Around 60 hectares have burned in the Bovan area, while approximately 200 hectares of forest and low vegetation have been affected in the Stolovi area. Firefighting teams remain on the ground.

“All our resources have been mobilized to the maximum, and we continue to fight the blaze,” Vidović stressed.

He pointed out that difficult terrain and strong winds are the biggest challenges facing the teams on the ground.

“First of all, the terrain is extremely, extremely difficult. There are simply large amounts of sand there, and vehicles get stuck in it. The wind has also been changing direction very frequently, and there were extremely strong winds in the area overnight,” Vidović said.

He stressed that strong winds are a major problem in Deliblato Sands, accelerating the spread of the fire, and added that a change in weather conditions would help firefighters contain it more quickly.

He said that since the beginning of the year, the Emergency Management Sector has carried out 24,000 interventions, half of which involved open-area fires. Four people have been killed in such fires.