Panic in Italy as tourists forced to evacuate in boats from raging inferno

Terrified tourists had to be evacuated by boat from an Italian beach, as flames from a raging wildfire tore down on them. The dramatic scenes happened on Sunday at Villasimius in southern Sardinia, where beachgoers were trapped by a wall of flames.

Boats had be brought to the beach to rescue the stranded beachgoers, as roads leading to the resort were cut off. According to officials, strong winds were hindering rescue operations as people scrambled to get on the boats. Europe has been hit by an intense heatwave, that has seen the mercury rise into the high 30Cs and in some places even above 40C.

The intense heat has created the prefect conditions for wildfires, which have broken out in several countries. In Turkey, at least 14 people have died from the fires, which have forced authorities to evacuate 19 villages.

Temperatures in the country reached more 40C in some areas last week, and even hit a record 50.5C on Friday in the far southeast, in Silopi, near the Iraqi and Syrian borders.

Firefighters in the country have called the situation "apocalyptic", warning that it could take "days" to bring the worst fires back under control.

Greece has also seen extremely high temperatures and a series of wildfires breaking out across the country. Over the weekend, 55 new fires were reported, though all but five were brought under control.

However, hundreds of firefighters are still battling raging blazes stretching from Crete to Evia and the Peloponnese.

Local residents and holidaymakers have been ordered to abandon homes and hotels under choking clouds of smoke.

Earlier this his month, an inferno erupted near Ierapetra, Crete, with walls of fire tearing through dry brush and hillside communities.

The UK's Foreign Office was forced to issue a travel advisory to the popular holiday destination.

More than 1,500 people were evacuated, though reports suggest up to 5,000 tourists left on their own as flames crept dangerously close to coastal resorts.