ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) — Balkan countries on Wednesday battled wildfires stoked by high temperatures, winds and a weekslong drought, as firefighters in Croatia cited their toughest day so far this season and North Macedonia suggested it might seek help from NATO.
Croatia’s Firefighters’ Association said the demanding 24-hour period included responding to more than 100 fires with over 1,000 firefighters and 20 firefighting planes. In North Macedonia, some 66 wildfires erupted over the past 24 hours.
The most serious incident in Croatia overnight was near the southern coastal town of Tucepi, where one firefighter was injured. A strong wind blowing through the night made it difficult to combat the raging blaze, stretching for several kilometers.
Police on Wednesday detained a 65-year-old man who is suspected of accidentally starting the fire while working on his beehives, police said in a statement. He is facing charges of endangering public safety.
Many residents spent a sleepless night and some evacuated their homes, Croatian state broadcaster HRT said. Power supplies were cut and several explosions could be heard, apparently from gas canisters, HRT said. Photos showed a blazing skyline with firefighting planes flying overhead.
The fire was under control for hours Wednesday before it reignited, spreading to a remote area in the nearby Biokovo nature park.
Local official Ante Cobanic said he tried to help extinguish a small fire before it suddenly spread in the space of five minutes.
"The speed was incredible," Cobanic said.
Further north, near the town of Sibenik, firefighters struggled to prevent a blaze from reaching Krka National Park, known for its stunning waterfalls. The park remained open for visitors Wednesday and thanked firefighters and residents for helping defend it.
“There is a constant danger of wind and reactivation,” said Josko Grancic, a senior firefighter for the coastal area.
Successive heat waves have helped trigger fires across the Balkan region and elsewhere in southern Europe at the height of the summer tourism season. Countries like North Macedonia, Bulgaria and Albania have all sought help from abroad.
North Macedonia asked for European Union assistance Tuesday, and the country's emergency center chief Stojanche Angelov said that if the situation worsens the government should also ask NATO for help.
"At this moment there is no need, but the assistance might be needed later today,” Angelov said.
Large wildfires in parts of North Macedonia this week destroyed and damaged homes, forced evacuations and claimed the life of an elderly resident in a village some 60 kilometers (40 miles) east of the capital Skopje.
One blaze crossed into Greece where two air tankers and a helicopter helped the firefighters hold back the flames from reaching a forest on the Greek banks of Lake Doiran, which is shared by the two countries.
Meanwhile, Greek firefighters scrambled to reach a blaze on the island of Evia, northeast of Athens, the second to hit the island this week. Authorities said 11 air tankers and three water-dropping helicopters were assisting 120 firefighters in the Pissona region in central Evia, where strong winds were hampering efforts to contain the wildfire.
The fire in Evia triggered the evacuation of four villages and sent a huge cloud of black smoke over Athens.
Neighboring Bulgaria's border with Greece was also affected, with one of the country's two biggest fires active there. The other blaze was raging Wednesday on Maleshevska Mountain on the border with North Macedonia. Tens of thousands of acres of forests and agricultural land were affected, the fire service said.
In Albania, hundreds of firefighters, military personnel and volunteers managed to get under control a major fire in the coastal town of Shengjin after it burned a house roof and two beach bars, sending visitors fleeing in panic.
Planes provided by the EU Civil Protection Mechanism have joined firefighting efforts in both Bulgaria and Albania.
Experts say human-induced climate change has brought wild weather swings, increasingly unpredictable storms and heat waves.
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Testorides reported from North Macedonia. Llazar Semini in Albania, Veselin Toshkov in Bulgaria and Derek Gatopoulos in Greece also contributed.
Darko Bandic And Konstantin Testorides, The Associated Press
