Nineteen injured, among them people with serious burns. Two hundred evacuated, some of them moved to Split on four buses. The fire that broke out last night near Lokva Rogoznica and spread towards Omiš through the night burned forests, houses, hospitality venues and cars before it was brought under control.

There is no longer open flame in the area of Lokva Rogoznica and Omiš, said fire service commander Slavko Tucaković. The fire started at around 8pm, beside the coastal highway. In two hours it travelled from Mimice to Omiš.

Two hours for the entire stretch of coast

"In only two hours the fire spread from Mimice to Omiš. Driven by the strong night wind, it spread as if gunpowder were burning. A large number of vehicles, houses, olive groves and hospitality venues were damaged," Tucaković said. He added that the fire near Split a few years ago was the fire to end all fires, but that this one is not far off it.

Four Canadair aircraft joined the effort. Firefighting units from other parts of Croatia are arriving towards Split to relieve the crews who spent the entire night fighting the flames. The scale of the damage, Tucaković said, will only be known later.

The highway, a strong night wind and ground full of dry olive groves - the combination is neither accidental nor unfamiliar. This is the same Adriatic coastline in the same month it burns in almost every summer, and yet every time everything depends on how fast the water bombers arrive and how many people manage to get out in time.

The question left over is not how it caught fire. The question is why protection for the most exposed coastline in the region is still measured in hours of response, rather than in what was done before August.