EU further extends support to Serbia as wildfires intensify

EU firefighting support to Serbia has been extended until 5 September, with 4 helicopters from the rescEU strategic reserve in Czechia, Romania and Slovakia and a ground firefighting team from Romania remaining deployed, as wildfires continue and strong winds are forecast in affected areas.

The severe wildfires affecting the Deliblato Sands Special Nature Reserve and other areas have burned around 13,920 hectares, according to Copernicus data as of 26 August. The scale and persistence of the emergency continue to put pressure on local response capacities and threaten one of Serbia's most important natural areas.

When Serbia requested assistance under the EU civil protection mechanism on Friday 21 august, the EU mobilised immediately. It took less than 24 hours to get from Serbia's request to European helicopters in the air.

For emergency assessment and operational planning, the EU's Copernicus emergency management service was activated on 8 August, providing satellite mapping and analysis of the affected area.

The EU is maintaining close coordination with the Serbian authorities through its emergency response coordination centre, with a liaison officer on the ground supporting operational coordination between the national authorities and European teams.

Commissioner for Preparedness and Crisis Management, Hadja Lahbib, said:

'These wildfires are putting enormous pressure on Serbia's firefighters and communities. At this difficult time, Europe stands firmly with Serbia and its people: our teams and aircraft continue to work side by side with Serbian responders to bring the fires under control. This is European solidarity in action, and we will continue to provide support as the situation evolves.'