Police Identify Individuals Who Released Sky Lanterns on Drvenik Veli
Two paper lanterns were released on Drvenik Veli during the fire season, while footage from Ugljan shows a cigarette butt being tossed from a police vehicle.
Two paper lanterns were released on Drvenik Veli during the fire season, while footage from Ugljan shows a cigarette butt being tossed from a police vehicle.
Amid firefighters' battle against blazes along the entire Adriatic coast, footage from Croatian islands bears witness to extremely irresponsible behavior. On Drvenik Veli, located in the Trogir archipelago, two paper lanterns were released into the air last night, as announced on the Facebook page Vatrogasci 193.
The Split-Dalmatia Police confirmed to Net.hr that they have established the identities of the individuals who released the lanterns. On the other hand, the Zadar Police are investigating an incident on the island of Ugljan, where footage from late May 2026 shows a person inside an official police vehicle tossing a lit cigarette butt out the window onto the road. The footage was published by the portal Morski.hr, and the police state that the circumstances of the case are still being determined.
Tomislav Resman, deputy commander of the Zagreb City Fire Brigade, viewed the lantern release footage and strongly condemned such behavior. "I would say it's pure human stupidity because no one can know where the lantern will land, and it could set fire to the place it falls on," Resman told Net.hr.
He also recalled a previous incident. "Six or seven years ago, we had a case where lanterns were released on Ban Jelačić Square. One of the lanterns flew to the cathedral, which was being renovated at the time, and set fire to the protective covering that was there. Fortunately, there was no major damage, but the fire spread very quickly," he recounted.
Resman emphasizes that current weather conditions are extremely conducive to the outbreak and rapid spread of fires. "It's been dry for days, temperatures are high, and fires start very easily. A small spark is enough to ignite something, and I don't understand why people do this. It's human stupidity. We urge citizens to behave responsibly because a small spark is enough to start a fire," he warned.
He also commented on the fires that have been raging across Europe in recent days. "We see these days that it's not just Croatia burning but all over Europe. Even Belgium and Germany are burning, where we rarely have grass fires. There are open-space fires all around us, from Italy and Greece to France and Spain. We urge citizens to be extra cautious and to really take care not to cause a larger fire," Resman concluded.
