Several vegetation fires prompted overnight evacuations in Kožlovac, Kolarina and Turanj. What has been officially confirmed, which places are meant and how travellers should act sensibly now.
Many fire sites, one exceptionally large emergency
From 19:50 on 20 August, the Zadar County fire service control room received reports of vegetation fires in several places. Near Benkovac, Popovići, Brgud–Lisičići, Podgrađe–Kožlovac and Miranje–Ceranje were named. Further fires were reported around Biograd and near Sveti Filip i Jakov and Turanj.
This is not one clearly bounded fire site that can be explained by a single point on a map. Several operational areas had to be tackled at the same time. According to the Croatian Firefighting Association, strong winds carried the fire across large areas of vegetation. The current official situation report does not quantify their total area or state the causes of the fires.
Where people were moved to safety
Three overnight evacuation measures are officially confirmed: residents of individual houses in Kožlovac were moved out as a precaution. Kolarina was fully evacuated. In Turanj, the evacuation affected the northern part of the village. These distinctions matter because they do not mean that all of Benkovac or the entire coast south of Zadar was evacuated.
The notice checked on 21 August also contains no general all-clear. A property not being expressly named therefore does not prove that its access road or surroundings are unaffected. Anyone staying in or travelling to one of the named places should contact their accommodation directly and give emergency-service instructions greater weight than maps, comments or photographs on social media.
Wildfires and evacuations
Confirmed evacuations in Kožlovac, Kolarina and northern Turanj, together with the scale of the firefighting response
This Turanj is on the coast – not near Karlovac
The place meant is Turanj on the Adriatic coast between Sveti Filip i Jakov and Biograd na Moru. The name occurs more than once in Croatia, so search engines and maps may lead to a district of Karlovac with the same name. The distinction is crucial for travellers: the current notice concerns the coastal village in the Zadar/Biograd area.
Kolarina and Kožlovac, by contrast, are inland in the wider Benkovac area. The named operational sites therefore do not form one continuous holiday region. Anyone driving south from Zadar should not infer a specific road or settlement from smoke on the horizon, but check the current traffic and official status for the exact route.
What the scale of the response shows
The Croatian Firefighting Association reports more than 100 firefighters from Zadar County, plus further units from Zadar, Šibenik and Vodice. Extraordinary forces were also requested from several other counties. From 06:30, 72 soldiers from Benkovac were travelling to or operating at the fire sites.
Four Canadair firefighting aircraft and four Air Tractors were deployed. These figures show a large and dynamic emergency response, but they are not a measure of the risk to every individual hotel or campsite. Wind direction, terrain and the location of individual fire fronts can change faster than a summary notice on a website.
No confirmed D8 closure is not an all-clear
The HAK traffic report checked at 12:21 does not list a specific fire-related closure of the D8 coastal road in this area. The only conclusion is that HAK did not show such a closure at that time. It is not a promise that every side road is open, smoke-free or sensible for tourist traffic.
Emergency vehicles, local roadblocks and short-notice instructions can change conditions on the ground. Do not drive into an affected area to see the situation for yourself. Anyone who must reach accommodation should wait for explicit confirmation from the host and reopen HAK immediately before departure.
What travellers should do now
Anyone already staying in Kožlovac, Kolarina, Turanj or immediately nearby should keep a phone, identity documents, medicines, water and the essentials for a rapid departure ready. Close windows and doors if smoke enters. If an evacuation is ordered, it applies immediately; luggage, photographs or a private vehicle are no reason to delay leaving.
Anyone yet to arrive should ask the accommodation three questions: Is the building accessible? Is an evacuation or return restriction known? Which access route does the local authority recommend? Neither a blanket cancellation for the whole region nor a blanket clearance is supported by the facts. The right decision depends on the precise location and the current official position.
112 is for specific danger, not general situation updates
In immediate danger, on seeing a new fire, with trapped people or in a medical emergency, 112 is the right number. Croatia’s civil-protection service accepts emergency calls there in several foreign languages and alerts the required services. For general travel planning, use HAK, the accommodation and local authorities so the emergency line remains free.
For a vegetation fire, civil protection advises people in buildings to close openings against smoke and to follow an ordered evacuation without delay. Outdoors, do not move through fire; seek an area without combustible vegetation. These are emergency rules, not an invitation to wait in a threatened area. The safest time to leave is the time specified by the emergency services.
Evidence
Sources & date
Sources support the facts. Planning notes and recommendations are Golden Beach editorial assessments.
- Fire season – situation in Zadar CountyCroatian Firefighting Association (HVZ) · 21 August 2026, checked at 12:32Fire locations, evacuations, wind conditions and deployed firefighting, military and aerial resources
- What to do in a fireCivil Protection Directorate · ongoing official emergency information, checked 21 August 2026Behaviour in smoke, outdoors, in a vehicle and during an ordered evacuation
- European emergency number 112 in CroatiaCivil Protection Directorate · updated 9 October 2025, checked 21 August 2026Purpose of the number, services reached and foreign-language capability
- Current road and maritime traffic conditionsCroatian Automobile Club (HAK) · updated 21 August 2026 at 12:21Check for specifically published road closures; dynamic traffic source
