May 17, 2023 - A wonderful collision of tradition, heritage, and FINALLY quality tourism content away from the beach, as Made in Croatia opens as Hvar celebrates 155 years of organised tourism. 

Something quite extraordinary happened in Hvar Town on Monday evening, even though it was uncharacteristically raining on Croatia's sunshine island. Indeed, perhaps the rain was a good thing, as it highlighted the event and the new addition to this season's tourism on Hvar. 

The location was a magnificent building on the corner of the largest square in Dalmatia, the date May 15 - exactly 155 years since the birth of organised tourism in Europe with the founding of the Hvar Health Society in 1868, right across the square where today luxury 5-star Palace Elisabeth hvar heritage hotel welcome's Croatia's premier island's luxury guests. 

The building in question is an extraordinary one, and one with lots of hidden layers. On the top floor of the imposing Arsenal is one of the island's secrets that often goes unnoticed by tourists and passers-by - the oldest public theatre in Europe, which opened in 1612, and which has recently undergone a complete renovation. 

Below the building, are Roman ruins which were discovered during renovation works a few years ago. And the main building itself is the magnificent Arsenal, whose name explains part of its illustrious past, guarding the entrance to Hvar's magical centre stage. ITs renovation complete, the Arsenal is a delightful multi-purpose entertainment centre, which has been taken over for the next few months for a quite magnificent exhibition which opened on the 155th anniversary of Hvar's organised tourism story. 

The Made in Croatia exhibition is an outstanding interactive showcase of the very best of Croatian innovation and invention over the centuries, featuring some 38 topics in an original and engaging way. Croatian tourism often falls short of quality content for all the family away from the beach, but here is an outstanding exhibition in a stunning location, which is guaranteed to bring in tourists and locals alike, and to educate and showcase the magic not just of Hvar, but also of Croatia. It would have been easy just to dedicate this exhibition space to Hvar and its considerable offer over the island, but what a fantastic way of representing the whole country in one prime tourist location.  

Our good friends from the Turisticke Price portal attended the opening: Here is what they had to say:

In the historic Hvar Arsenal, one of the trademarks of the city of Hvar, the exhibition "Hvar presents: Made in Croatia" was opened, which presents in one place the builders of the foundations of the Croatian identity, whose inventions, knowledge and ideas have become part of civilizational assets and artifacts of cultural heritage without which today it is almost impossible to imagine the functioning of modern life.

The exhibition "Hvar presents: Made in Croatia" is part of the program by which the Town of Hvar and the Tourist Board of the Town of Hvar commemorate 155 years of organized tourism in Hvar, and the opening ceremony was held on the very day of the founding of the Hygiene Society, the first such association in Europe, a kind of forerunner of tourist boards. that we know today. Back in 1868, spa tourism was the main reason for coming to Hvar, and with this exhibition, we want to focus on cultural tourism. Because Hvar, in addition to the beautiful nature, superb food and wine and vibrant atmosphere, is a city where culture is an integral part of its identity.

This specially tailored exhibition is a unique event in which, through a multimedia encounter with great men, their inventions or works of art that left their mark on the world level, a part of Croatian heritage is presented to the people of Hvar and their guests. The exhibition is on display until July 20.

Originality, visionary, wide application of ideas and inventions were the criteria for selecting the individuals represented at the exhibition. The unique national, scientific and cultural heritage is presented in the curatorial conception of Dr. sc. Anita Ruso Brečić.

@turistickeprice Hvar presents -Made in Croatia This is Croatia ✔️ #glagoljica #nikolatesla #bascanskaploca #slavoljubpenkala #rudjerboskovic #penkala #faustvrancic #lavoslavružička #doramaar #baltazar #ivanmestrovic #andrijastampar #jurajdalmatinac??? #torpedo #zepelin #parachute #petarhektorovic #davidschwartz #haniballucic #modric #drazenpetrovic #hvar #hvararsenal #croatia?? #croatiantiktok #fyp ♬ Memories - Lux-Inspira

Invention and art
The exhibition consists of a total of 38 topics. Some of the topics refer to individuals such as Nikola Tesla, Faust Vrančić, Doraa Maar, Slavoljub Eduard Penkala, Ivan Vučetić and Hanibal Lucić, while certain topics refer to groups of people (from the same field of activity) and separate cultural heritage specific to the island of Hvar and/or Croatia.

The main guiding thought of the exhibition concept is to create links between the inventive and artistic past, present and future. Various works of art, author's designs, patents, archival documents and videos can be viewed in the exhibition, as well as devices and devices created according to the patents and ideas of deserving individuals.

The Hvar Arsenal, itself a cultural asset of national importance, is once again becoming a unique exhibition space and a place for meetings, exchange of ideas, and perhaps inspiration for some new visionaries.

Excellent stuff, and I do encourage you to check it out if you are visiting Hvar before it closed on July 20. 

But that is not the only piece of magic in this most impressive of buildings, for upstairs in Europe's oldest public theatre, the 50th edition of Hvar Theatre Days kicked off (see the program below), a unique opportunity to experience this historic and delightful theatre. 

Hvar's special anniversary was remembered in other ways as well, including a special panel of influential tourism personalities, called Culture in Tourism. Tourism in Culture. From the Hvar Tourist Board Facebook page:

At today's panel discussion "Culture in tourism, tourism in culture", held on the basis of celebrating 155 years of organized tourism in Hvar, there were discussions about the connection between tourism, culture and creative industries, the valorization of cultural heritage and its inclusion in the tourist offer, what is the tourist potential but also what are the challenges we face.

The following participated in the panel:

• Tonči Glavina, State Secretary, Ministry of Tourism and Sports of the Republic of Croatia
• Renata Tomljenović, Institute for Tourism, Zagreb
• Nataša Bušić, HGK Split – cultural tourism section
• Ivana Vladović, director of Central Dalmatia Tourism Board Director
• Miro Drašković, director of Dubrovnik Tourist Board
• Katija Vučetić, head of the Department for Culture and Public Relations of the City of Hvar
• Damir Kanaet, culture manager and executive producer of the "Made in Croatia" exhibition
• Goran Rihelj, owner and editor of HRTurizam portal, moderator of the panel

Peak season is coming, which will attract a different type of tourist to this most versatile of tourist islands, but these last few days have been a powerful reminder of cultural and traditional Hvar, one of the richest islands in the Mediterranean for its history and culture. 

May the 17th, 2023 - The Republic of Croatia has been listed among the five countries most attractive for investment out of sixteen nations located in Central and Eastern Europe.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the analysis of this year's economic research conducted by the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce for the 18th year on 141 companies has found that more than 80% of companies would be ready to invest in Croatia again.

This is an extremely positive indicator that the willingness of companies to reinvest in Croatia has remained at the same level as it was back in 2021 and 2022. Croatia ranked highly at 5th place among the 16 countries of Central and Eastern Europe surveyed when it comes to the attractiveness of the location for investors. Almost 90% of entrepreneurs rated the business operations of their own companies as good or satisfactory despite the typically very complex economic conditions in which they operate.

Business expectations for 2023 are significantly worse than the assessment of the current economic situation, and those in business are pessimistic as a result - only 23% of respondents expect the business situation to improve during the remainder of 2023.

The availability of professional labour has been characterised as the biggest risk in business, followed by the high prices of energy and raw materials and the cost of labour. For the third year in a row, membership of the European Union, the qualifications of workers and the academic education of said workers have all been rated positively in Croatia. The suppression of crime and corruption has been cited as the biggest drawback of doing business in Croatia, followed by tax burdens, the overall tax system and public administration.

40% of respondents consider the work of the current Croatian Government to be poor, and the same percentage considers it to be satisfactory

"In an active dialogue with our members and state bodies, the Chamber, as the largest bilateral business community in the country, advocates for the strengthening of conditions that favour the greater attractiveness of Croatia as an investment location. This year, Croatia took a high fifth place among sixteen countries across the region with regard to the attractiveness of the country as a business location.

Croatia's entry into the Eurozone and into Schengen certainly contributed to it being seen as having a positive business climate. The Croatian Government is making great efforts to mitigate and prevent the spillover of energy price increases to both people and to business entities, but according to the results of the survey, entrepreneurs in Croatia as well as in other countries in Central and Eastern Europe cite the increase in energy prices as one of the biggest risks for their business. When we talk about the results in Croatia, those in business state that the first limiting factor in business is the lack of skilled labour," said Mr. Marjan Vucak, president of the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce during the presentation of the results of this particular economic survey.

The current state of the Croatian economy has been rated as satisfactory for more than half of the respondents

Almost 60% of respondents rated the current economic situation in Croatia as satisfactory, which represents an increase of 5% compared to the previous year, while 20% of them consider the situation to be good. Comparing those percentages with those from back in 2022, 22% of respondents believed that the economic situation in Croatia is better. When it comes to the perception of the economic situation, the countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) rate the economic situation of their own countries in almost the same percentage as the survey participants in Croatia.

Despite the polycrisis, entrepreneurs are optimistic when they talk about business in their industry

57% of the respondents to this survey rated the current business situation in their own industry as satisfactory and 32% as good despite the uncertain economic situation. Compared to 2022, the share of companies that consider the situation in their industry to be good fell by 10%. 50% of the respondents rated business in their own company as good and 45% deemed it satisfactory. Similar results were recorded in the other 15 CEE countries, among which, in addition to Croatia, an economic survey was also conducted. Only 7% of respondents in CEE countries rate their business situation as bad. Slightly more than 60% of entrepreneurs state that turnover has increased compared to the previous year, while exports have increased by 38% compared to 2021.

Economic expectations for next year remain somewhat pessimistic

When it comes to forecasts of the economic situation for 2023, the estimates continue to be pessimistic. Those in business estimate that the situation will remain unchanged (55%), and only 23% believe that it will improve at some point in 2023. We can look for and easily find the reasons for that sentiment in the very complex economic conditions caused by the ongoing war in Ukraine, the still record high inflation rate and the continued economic consequences of the global coronavirus pandemic.

The level of attractiveness of an investment destination

Croatia's entry into the Eurozone and the Schengen area is expected to create a more positive business climate, as was confirmed by the research results (71% believe that Croatia's entry into the Eurozone have a positive impact on business throughout 2023, while 77% believe that Croatia's entry into Schengen will have positive business consequences. The above is not surprising considering that more than 80% of Croatian trade is also done with Schengen countries.

Croatia was, as stated, ranked in the first 5 most attractive locations for investment among 16 countries of Central and Eastern Europe. Slovenia (1), Poland (2), the Czech Republic (3) and Estonia (4) were among the four most attractive countries. Back in 2021, Croatia was in 8th place, and this year's result is the best result since the Chamber has been conducting economic research. An encouraging 81% of the companies that participated in the survey would choose Croatia again as a location for investment. This means that the number of companies that would invest in Croatia again has been at almost the same level for three years.

Risks in business - the lack of skilled labour is a dominant challenge for companies

For the first time, companies surveyed stated that the availability of qualified labour is the biggest threat to the development of their company (51%). In a high second place are the prices of energy and raw materials (43%), then labour costs (41%), domestic demand (26%), which has been significantly reduced as a risk compared to last year's research (48%), the predictability of economic policy (25%) and payment discipline (23%).

Analysing the data across the CEE region, the increase in energy prices as a risk factor when it comes to doing business is most represented in Poland (82%), Macedonia (71%), Hungary (67%), Slovenia (62%), the Czech Republic (60%) and Latvia (58%). The availability of professional labour as a business risk was especially highlighted by companies operating in Macedonia (71%), Bulgaria (65%), Albania and Romania (61%), Hungary, Kosovo and Slovakia (57%).

Work and the workforce

47% of respondents stated that the number of employees in their company will increase, while an insignificant number (5%) estimates that the number of employees will decrease. Given that inflation back in 2022 stood at a high 10.8%, it's rather interesting to note that the largest number of respondents believe that salaries will increase by 10-20% during the rest of 2023.

Changes in the international division of labour are ubiquitous on a global scale. Survey respondents estimate that long-term changes in international supply chains will manifest themselves in increased political influence on supply chains (37%), changes in transport routes (30%), growth in protectionism (29%), changed risk assessments of business destinations (27%), moving production to new locations (27%) and moving production closer to the German/European domestic market (27%).

Expanding the offer for internal education (43%) is the most common measure that employers plan to take when talking about the lack of professional labour. This is followed by increased automation and the digitisation of business (36%), an increase in the average salary (32%), encouraging employees nearing retirement to stay with the company (29%), an increase in allowances paid alongside employee salaries (25%) and increased cooperation with various types of educational institutions (25%).

The dire economic consequences of the war in Ukraine

A little over a year after Russia's aggression against Ukraine began, the global economy continues to face various negative consequences. High prices for energy, raw materials and other such items (which are a concern for almost 82% of respondents) represent the greatest concern for business owners when it comes to the short-term consequences of this war. This is followed by disruptions in supply and logistics chains (46%), a shortage of raw materials (27%), increased legal uncertainty (19%), a reduction in incoming orders (14%) and the loss of business partners (14%).

The advantages and disadvantages of doing business in Croatia

Membership of the European Union, employee qualification(s), the adequacy of higher education, payment discipline, infrastructure, productivity and the commitment of employees to gaining better work results are all mentioned as positive aspects of doing business in Croatia. The insufficient fight against corruption stands out as the biggest shortcoming of business in Croatia. As disadvantages, entrepreneurs then cite tax burdens, the tax system, the poor public administration and the lack of transparency of public procurement.

The application of the EU taxonomy

Only 3% of respondents were familiar with the EU taxonomy, the EU classification tool that signals the success of companies in contributing to sustainability. 54% of them consider their own knowledge of the application of the EU taxonomy to be insufficient.

For more, check out our news section.

May the 17th, 2023 - The popular Croatian brands Zvijezda (star) and PIK Vrbovec have decided to team up in partnership with the much loved Mlinar. They have already announced three brand new products.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, Mlinar, as one of the largest bakery groups within the Adria region that continuously innovates and follows trends, has recently been offering Planet of plants products in its assortment: burek, hot dogs made in puff pastry and a plant-based sandwich. In the first phase, the offer will be available at more than 70 Mlinar sales points throughout the Republic of Croatia, and in the second phase, it will be available in the entire Mlinar network and for other wholesale customers. This is the result of cooperation with the popular Croatian brands Zvijezda and PIK Vrbovec, which, several years ago, designed the very first Croatian line of plant-based products; Planet of plants.

Planet of plants burek contains pea protein instead of minced meat, and along with it, there is also a leafy one with a Planet of plants hot dog created on a plant-based basis which is made from pea protein and potatoes, with a side of mustard combined with a creamy sauce made of ginger, turmeric and cumin. The third product that can recently be found in Mlinar is a sandwich with salami made from sunflower protein, along enriched with egg-free mayonnaise.

"When we say plant-based, most people still think of vegans and vegetarians. However, the market shows that we're increasingly choosing plant-based foods, this even goes for all of us "others" for whom meat is still an important source of protein, but are ready to try something new and introduce new eating habits. Our strength lies in the experience of production based on the use of the power of plants, and we're glad that we have the opportunity to build the development of a new category of products together with consumers and create some new habits,'' said Gaspar Novak, the director of marketing and development of Zvijezda, which developed the line in synergy with PIK Vrbovec within the Fortenova Group.

Mlinar, on the other hand, stated that they always try to keep up with trends and offer their customers something new.

"Following the trends, cooperation with Planet of plants, as the first Croatian line of plant-based products, was a logical step forward. We combined tradition with innovation and offered our customers practical and tasty snacks at sales points throughout the Republic of Croatia. Burek is Mlinar's best-selling product of all, and we're glad that with this step into plant-based alternatives to meat, we've been able to further expand our offer," said Mario Scherr, Mlinar's executive director of marketing and retail.

In the Planet of plants line, in addition to the new bakery products that can now be found in Mlinar stores, there are a total of nine products: burgers, salami, minced meat, hot dogs, dumplings, mayonnaise, sauce, spread and coconut cubes. In addition to Croatia, these new products can be found on the markets of Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro and Hungary, and further expansion of placement on foreign markets is planned.

For more, check out our news section.

May the 18th, 2023 - The American Wine Enthusiast magazine has given the wine made by one popular Fakin Winery in Istria an impressive 95 points. Fakin's Teran il Primo from 2019 is certainly winning people over across the pond in the USA.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, Wine Enthusiast, the leading American expert magazine in the wine industry and one of the most influential of its sort in the world, rated Teran il Primo from the 2019 vintage of Istria's Fakin Winery with an impressive 95 points. The magazine both celebrates and promotes the innovation of individuals and companies that have significantly contributed to the success of the competitive wine world.

With this valuable recognition, Fakin's Teran il Primo from the 2019 vintage is the first teran on the US market with 95 points and was included in the Wine Enthusiast Buying Guide for the month of May 2023, which is another great achievement from Marko Fakin and his young, authentic family winery from the village of Bataji at the foot of Motovun in Istria. The Fakin Winery continues to carve its way forward on both the American and domestic markets and position the native Teran variety as a world-class wine, proving the consistent quality of Istrian winemaking.

"I'm extremely honored that Wine Enthusiast, one of the world's most relevant wine magazines, whose evaluations have a great influence on the formation of the wine order on the international market, rated our Teran il Primo from the 2019 vintage with an amazing 95 points. I'm especially happy because Teran, my lifelong project and greatest pride and the most famous variety of the Motovun vineyard, has achieved such a respectable success as one of the most awarded Croatian wines in the world," said Marko Fakin.

Teran Il Primo is otherwise an elegant, top-quality wine which ensures its directness and reliability of taste, as well as the fullness and richness of the body through the precise selection of the highest quality hand-picked grapes from vineyards whose roots date back to 1972. Il Primo draws its uniqueness from the aging process done in oak barrels for 24 month periods. In addition to the extraordinary success of Il Primo, the Fakin Winery can add another high 93 points to its list for its Teran from the 2021 vintage and 90 points awarded to Malvasia (Malvazija) La Prima from 2020 to its opus in this year's Wine Enthusiast evaluation.

The love of Croatian wine across the pond is all furthered by the support of Croatian Premium Wine Imports, a company that imports and distributes Croatian wines in the USA. The co-founder of the company and the ambassador of Croatian wines in the USA, Mirena Bagur, strategically educates the market about Croatian varieties, thus creating a category of Croatian wines in American stores and restaurants.

For more, check out our dedicated news section.

May 16, 2023 - Thinking of emigrating? Why the grass is greener in Croatia - a video from a presentation at the Zagreb FER Faculty of Engineering last week. 

I am often accused of being too positive about Croatia.

A little positivity never killed anyone, of course, but after 20 years of living here and being surrounded by the default negative Croatian mindset, I decided to start a YouTube channel looking at the brighter and more positive aspects of life here.

Two of the first videos I did were 8 Reasons Croatia is the Best Place to Live in Europe, and 10 Things Croatia Does Better than Anywhere Else. Both were very popular, and both attracted a lot of comment, some complimentary, some critical.

Having read the comments, I decided to offer a free presentation to any school or university faculty in Croatia in destinations that I would be visiting called "Thinking of Emigrating? Why the Grass is Greener in Croatia."

Perhaps, after 20 years here and having travelled to 96 countries and lived in ten, I had a slightly different perspective that students might be interested in hearing.

I have done several presentations on the topic since I made the offer, the most recent of which was at the FER Faculty of Engineering in Zagreb last week, who were kind enough to record the presentation so that it could be watched more widely. Here it is, in full.

May 16, 2023 - The kindness of strangers, a constant theme in Croatia.  Where else could you drop your laptop in the street and not realise until the next day and then be reunited with it?

Croatia is a very safe country, and female travellers in particular often comment on how much safer they feel walking around at night here than in cities in Western Europe.

It is also a country where I have heard countless stories over the years of tourists and expats leaving things such as their wallet in a cafe, only to return a couple of hours later and find it untouched, or behind the bar, waiting for their return.

I have my own experience, which I explain in this video - the day I somehow lost my laptop in Zagreb and didn't notice until the following morning in Varazdin.

And then I got a message from a stranger on Facebook...

The latest from the Fat Vlogger, which premieres at 19:53 tonight.

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You can subscribe to the Paul Bradbury Croatia Expert YouTube channel here.

What is it like to live in Croatia? An expat for 20 years, you can follow my series, 20 Ways Croatia Changed Me in 20 Years, starting at the beginning - Business and Dalmatia.

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Croatia, a Survival Kit for Foreigners is now available on Amazon in paperback and on Kindle.

May 17, 2023 - Dejan Levačić, a perfume maker from Čakovec and owner of Levy Perfumes, made the world's largest bottle of perfume back in 2020, as covered by TCN. Certified by the Guinness Book of World Records, standing at 1.91 metres in length, 0.82 metres across, and 0.46 metres wide, and holding 616.18 litres of perfume, the bottle shows a fragrant disregard for the norms of perfumery. 

Three years later, Dejan's business grew, and he notified us that his little daughter followed in his family's footsteps. His daughter Mia created her own bottle of luxury perfume, now available at the Levy Perfumes official website. Dejan seemed really proud, and the little one was so happy about her creation that we decided to find out more. Check out our interview with Dejan.

Can you share more about your company, what it's currently doing, etc.

Levy produces perfumes for its own brand Levy Perfumes but also offers the possibility of producing perfume for clients who want a personalized scent.

What ended up happening with the world's largest bottle of perfume? Do you still have it, or have you sold it?

The largest perfume bottle in the world has not yet been sold, and this project is in its final stages. We are currently negotiating with the agency that will offer it for sale.

Tell us about your daughter, how old she is, her hobbies, and her interests outside of the world of perfumes. 

Mia is 12 years old and is finishing the 6^th grade of primary school. She is an avid fan of cosmetics, so she spends most of her free time following news and trends in that area. She likes to test recipes for natural cosmetics and design new scents. In addition, she helps a lot in the production process. She does simple jobs, but that way, she's learning the process from start to finish. She enjoys gymnastics, as well as other sports, such as football. She has a pet, a rabbit she named Hilja.

How did your daughter become interested and start thinking about creating her perfume?

Mia showed great interest in cosmetics from an early age. I knew how to talk to her about how I and my mother, Zlatica, got to know the production processes of cosmetics. My mother worked at the Pliva factory, where cosmetics were produced. Looking at our family photo albums, Mia and I talked a lot about it. In recent years, Mia has had a great wish to create her perfume. Her persistence and will enabled her to achieve it. She changed her mind a few times during the process but ultimately got the scent she wanted. She also decided on the bottle's design with her name printed in golden letters and a golden crown with diamonds as the cap.

What are her main interests when it comes to perfumes? Picking out the fragrances, designing the bottle, or something else?

She is mainly focused on designing the fragrance and the product's final look, which allows her creativity to shine.

Can you tell us more about Mia's perfume?

Mia perfume is a rhapsody of fruity floral notes for bold and ambitious women who take the initiative, but it also fits romantic souls. Notes of orchid, strawberry, mandarin, watermelon, pineapple, grapefruit, peony, vanilla, jasmine, and wood notes are composed in this unique fragrance. The perfume was created in a limited edition of 100 glass bottles with a capacity of 50 ml. The cap is a golden crown with little stones resembling diamonds. Her name, Mia, is printed in gold letters on the bottle, which is then packed in a luxurious red box. The perfume contains 20% essence.

The price of the perfume is €100. Some bottles are reserved for regular customers who follow our work; the rest is for the market.

Will there be more from Levy perfumes with Mia's signature?

Considering her persistence and interest, there is a high probability that Mia is the first in a series of her perfume story.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated Lifestyle section.

May 16, 2023 - In recent days, extreme weather in Croatia has caused all sorts of problems. Storms and hail have destroyed buildings, including a kindergarten, and rivers have flooded entire towns. The rain is not expected to stop for the next seven to ten days either.

As Index writes, after 250 liters per square meter fell in just 24 hours, the water level of the Zrmanja River in Obrovac reached a historic 302 centimeters yesterday morning, which is 39 cm above the highest Zrmanja water level measured in that city. The water spilled onto the streets and made its way into the historic core. The situation is similar and also difficult in Gračac.

Meteorologists and Croatian Water authorities announced that today the situation is expected to become even more complicated, with more rain and the water levels of almost all rivers in Croatia rising.

"New forecasts from this morning indicated the possibility of large water waves in the Sava, Kupa, and Una rivers in the coming days. Very high water levels of the Kupa River are expected in the Karlovac, Petrinja and Sisak areas, and especially of the Una River in the Kostajnica area. The maximum water levels of the Kupa River in Karlovac and Una in Hrvatska Kostajnica are expected during Wednesday, May 17, 2023, at levels similar to December 2022. From the direction of Slovenia, the formation of a large water wave of the Sava River at a level of 1,800-2,000 m³/s is also expected on Wednesday, May 17. 2023", Croatian water authorities announced.

At least 59 houses were flooded in Gračac

Due to the configuration of the terrain, Gračac cannot defend itself with flood embankments because the water penetrates from the karst underground in many places and not from one direction.

The peak of the water wave in Karlovac and Hrvatska Kostajnica expected tomorrow

The Directorate of Civil Protection announced on Twitter that the maximum water levels of the Kupa River in Karlovac and the Una River in Hrvatska Kostajnica are expected on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. In addition, they warn that the formation of a large water wave of the Sava River is also expected from the direction of Slovenia.

Obrovac waterfront flooded

In Obrovac, the waterfront that was flooded. It was ceremonially opened 15 years ago by the then Minister of the Sea, Transport, and Infrastructure Božidar Kalmeta, who emphasized that it would ensure the town of Obrovac be safe from floods.

150 soldiers helping preparations for floods in Banovina as well

Around 150 members of the Croatian Army with the corresponding material resources are engaged in preparations for flood defense in parts of Sisak-Moslavina County - 100 soldiers in the area of Nova Drenčina and 50 soldiers in the area of Hrvatska Kostajnica.

Firefighters: interventions all around Croatia

A total of 226 different fire interventions were recorded in Croatia on May 14 and 15, involving a total of 735 firefighters with 275 fire engines.

By 5:00 p.m. in Zadar County, 47 technical interventions caused by storms were recorded through the Fire Intervention Management (UVI) application, which related to the pumping out of the water from buildings, the flooding of roads and yards, and in which 92 firefighters, with 51 vehicles participated.

During the evening and night near Gračac, there were 25 firefighters with eight vehicles from JVP, DVD Gračac, DVD Pakoštane-Vrgada-Vrana, and DVD Sv. Filip i Jakov and JVP Pag and the Intervention fire brigade Zadar with pumps, while in the area of Obrovac, 23 firefighters with six vehicles intervened.

Plenković: Big threats and challenges in the coming days

Prime Minister and HDZ president Andrej Plenković made a statement to the media after the session of the HDZ presidency.

He said they contacted Virovitica-Podravina, Zadar, Lika-Senj, and Karlovac counties. "All services are on the ground, including civil protection, police, and HV, to help defend against floods. The situation in Zadar County, in Obrovac and Gračac, is difficult," he stated.

"Unfortunately, the water is also expected to rise in other regions. There will be great threats and challenges in the coming days," the prime minister warned. He promised that the government would help repair the damage.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated News section.