Unesco-listed site saved from fire

“Depending on it we’ll consider further steps,” he said.

 

Twenty-six firefighters have been injured since Saturday fighting the fire that formed a 20km front on Sunday as it approached the town.

 

Some residents had been evacuated as a state of emergency was declared.

 

Tomislav Vuko, the deputy fire chief, said: “In some areas we fought the blaze house-to-house. The damage could have been worse, but we were able to stop the fire injuring more people or damaging more property.

 

“We are satisfied with the outcome of this situation. Our forces have done a great job during the night and we have brought the fire under control along the entire front.”

 

A heatwave across much of southern Europe in recent weeks has caused extensive forest fires from Greece to Italy and last week even in Spain’s Canary islands.

 

About 2,300 hectares of forest and brush burned last month, the result of the heatwave that struck Croatia’s Adriatic coast.