A dramatic night unfolded on the Croatian island of Brač after a fast moving wildfire, pushed by strong winds, reached a hotel complex in the Osibova Bay area, where around 450 people were staying. As the flames spread, a large scale evacuation operation was launched, with people transported toward Milna using police and military boats, vessels from the Port Authority, Croatian Mountain Rescue Service teams, tugboats from Brodospas, tourist boats and numerous private vessels. Among those caught in the evacuation was a family from Bosnia and Herzegovina, whose father later described the terrifying moments they experienced while trying to escape the fire.
The Bosnian tourist, identified as Adem, said his family found themselves trapped between the flames and the sea while trying to protect their baby. He described one particularly frightening moment when burning embers fell onto the baby’s head and her hair began to catch fire. With the sea and waves in front of them and the wildfire behind them, Adem said he had to extinguish the flames himself while holding his child. The situation, he recalled, felt like something from a horror movie, as the family waited for a way to escape while the fire continued spreading around them. Despite the terrifying circumstances, the baby and her mother ultimately managed to escape safely.
Adem said the most important thing was that his wife and baby were alive and well after the ordeal. The baby had been coughing during the night following the evacuation, but by the next day she was feeling much better, smiling and showing no signs of serious problems. The father said the experience left him deeply grateful for the people who helped evacuate those trapped in the affected area, particularly the firefighters and rescue teams who worked through the dangerous conditions to protect residents and tourists. He later encountered one of the firefighters he had spoken to during the evacuation and told him that he could hardly believe how successfully the emergency crews had managed the situation.
The wildfire created extremely dangerous conditions for people staying in the Osibova Bay area, with strong winds helping the flames move quickly and making the evacuation more difficult. The large number of people in the hotel complex meant that authorities had to coordinate several different rescue resources at the same time, including boats operated by emergency services as well as vessels belonging to private individuals. For Adem and his family, the night ended safely, but his account illustrates just how quickly a wildfire can turn a holiday into a life threatening emergency. His description of holding his baby while embers fell around them has become one of the most dramatic personal accounts from the evacuation on Brač.
