Deliblato Sands Shows No Hotspots as 90 km/h Winds Loom
Satellite imagery shows no active hotspots in the Deliblato Sands for the first time, a day after up to 300 hectares burned. Serbia warns of 90 km/h winds this weekend, with 12 wildfires still active.
The satellite system that monitors the Deliblato Sands has, for the first time since the fire broke out, stopped detecting any active hotspots in the area. The update came from Luka Causic, head of the Interior Ministry’s Emergency Situations Sector, during an appearance on RTS’s evening news on August 27. He added that 12 wildfires are currently active across Serbia.
“This is the first time; our colleagues from Vojvodinasume report that the satellite is not detecting hotspots in the Deliblato Sands,” Causic said.
The reading comes from Vojvodinasume, the forestry service that regularly monitors the sands using satellite images. According to Causic, the terrain is also being tracked around the clock by drones, day and night. The cause of the Deliblato Sands fire is still being determined, since crews were unable to physically reach the site where it broke out in the first days. Based on figures Causic gave, the fire spread across between 200 and 300 hectares in the middle of the sands in a single day.
Why Is Wind the Biggest Threat This Weekend?
The wind is the biggest threat because forecasters expect strong gusts across that part of Vojvodina over the weekend, even though conditions have improved compared to previous days. Sustained winds of 50 to 60 km/h are forecast, with gusts reaching up to 90 km/h.
“There will be gusts of up to 90 km/h, which makes the response more difficult. Wind is our biggest enemy, and we have to be extremely careful,” Causic said.
He said the weather facing firefighters, both domestic crews and the foreign teams deployed on the ground, makes the situation unusual and unlike anything in their careers so far.
“We hope that once we get through the weekend, we won’t have any major flare ups or new outbreaks,” Causic said.
Stolovi Fire Still Burning, Vranje Blaze Persists
The fire on Stolovi mountain, near Kraljevo, had not been contained as of August 27, although conditions on the ground are better than in previous days. This outlet has previously reported on the effort to put out that fire, when firefighters logged 68 helicopter sorties while a separate blaze burned on Goc at the same time. Two helicopters remain deployed at the site, dropping water from the air, since the terrain between the ridges and the Maglasnica River is extremely difficult to reach from the ground.
According to Causic, the situation is stable both on Goc and near the village of Slisane close to Lebane, where containment was expected to be declared on August 27. In the village of Lukovo near Vranje, the fire has now been active for six days in a row, but conditions have stabilized, and homes in the surrounding area have been protected, according to the Emergency Situations Sector.
New Hotspot Near Kraljevo Already Contained
A morning situation report issued at 7:51 a.m. on August 28 noted that a new fire, which broke out between Kraljevo and Lucani, burned around 15 hectares of low vegetation and brush and is already under control. The same night, a fire also broke out at the regional landfill in Zeljkovac near Leskovac, where 18 firefighters were on site as of the morning of August 28.
Since the start of August, Serbia has recorded 3,560 open-air wildfires, according to figures Causic presented. The Emergency Situations Sector says all of them, apart from the fires on Stolovi and in the Deliblato Sands, were quickly contained and extinguished.
