Firefighters in Croatia and Montenegro have been struggling to contain wild fires along the Adriatic coast as their counterparts in Italy, France and Portugal have been battling major blazes.

Firefighters try to extinguish a wildfire in the village of Mravince near Split, Croatia on 17 July 2017.
Firefighters try to extinguish a wildfire in the village of Mravince near Split, Croatia on 17 July 2017. (TRT World and Agencies)

About a dozen wildfires broke out late on Sunday in the villages surrounding Split, a popular tourist destination, but firefighters managed to control the blaze on the outskirts of Croatia's second-largest city.

Local residents try to extinguish the wildfire in the village of Mravince near Split, Croatia on 17 July 2017.
Local residents try to extinguish the wildfire in the village of Mravince near Split, Croatia on 17 July 2017. (TRT World and Agencies)

Late on Monday the fire spread to the suburbs of Split where a shopping centre had to be evacuated and several cars were burned.

A car burned by the wildfire is seen in the village of Mravince near Split, Croatia, July 17, 2017.
A car burned by the wildfire is seen in the village of Mravince near Split, Croatia, July 17, 2017. (TRT World and Agencies)

According to initial estimates some 4,500 hectares (11,120 acres) of land, mostly pine forests, bushes and olive groves, were destroyed. Houses were burned, but there were no reports of casualties.

A firefighting plane drops water to extinguish a forest fire near Zadar city of Croatia on July 17, 2017.
A firefighting plane drops water to extinguish a forest fire near Zadar city of Croatia on July 17, 2017. (TRT World and Agencies)

In neighbouring Montenegro, where the forest fires forced the evacuation of more than a hundred campers on the Lustica peninsula, the situation had improved on Tuesday.

A tourist gives a thumbs-up as he poses for a picture with a forest fire in the background at Lustica peninsula near Tivat, Montenegro on July 17, 2017.
A tourist gives a thumbs-up as he poses for a picture with a forest fire in the background at Lustica peninsula near Tivat, Montenegro on July 17, 2017. (TRT World and Agencies)

Fires however were still burning in several municipalities further inland but were all under control, according to a statement from the interior ministry.

Firefighters try to keep the fire under control next to a monastery at Lustica peninsula near Tivat, Montenegro on July 17, 2017.
Firefighters try to keep the fire under control next to a monastery at Lustica peninsula near Tivat, Montenegro on July 17, 2017. (TRT World and Agencies)

In Italy, authorities said a blaze in a pine forest at a popular park outside Rome was deliberately set and that a suspect has been arrested. The fire has since been brought under control.

Burned trees are pictured in Vesuvius National Park on the outskirts of Naples, Italy on July 17, 2017.
Burned trees are pictured in Vesuvius National Park on the outskirts of Naples, Italy on July 17, 2017. (TRT World and Agencies)

But fires continued to burn in southern Italy in parts of the Calabria region and in the outskirts of Naples, where one person died on Monday after falling off his roof where he went to look at how the forest fire was progressing not far from his home.

Wildfires burn in the Padule del Chiarone area, near the central Italy town of Capalbio, where a camping site was evacuated as a precaution on July 16, 2017.
Wildfires burn in the Padule del Chiarone area, near the central Italy town of Capalbio, where a camping site was evacuated as a precaution on July 16, 2017. (TRT World and Agencies)

Winds, high temperatures and dry conditions prompted fires to break out the past several days in southern France and the Mediterranean island of Corsica.

A Tracker firefighting airplane drops water with fire-retardant chemicals over a fire near houses in Castagniers, near Nice in southern France on July 17, 2017.
A Tracker firefighting airplane drops water with fire-retardant chemicals over a fire near houses in Castagniers, near Nice in southern France on July 17, 2017. (TRT World and Agencies)

More than 450 firefighters were still battling a forest fire at Castagniera, north of Nice, which has destroyed some 100 hectares but appears not to be spreading further, authorities said.

On Monday fire swept through around 200 hectares of scrubland near Bonifacio in southern Corsica.

Charred terrain and a burning tree trunk near firefighters battling a fire in Castagniers, France, on July 17, 2017.
Charred terrain and a burning tree trunk near firefighters battling a fire in Castagniers, France, on July 17, 2017. (TRT World and Agencies)

On Europe's Atlantic coast nearly 1,400 firefighters supported by water-bombing planes and helicopters have battled three major blazes in northern Portugal since Sunday.

Smoke rises near burned land following a wildfire in Alijo, Portugal, on July 18, 2017.
Smoke rises near burned land following a wildfire in Alijo, Portugal, on July 18, 2017. (TRT World and Agencies)

Civil protection authorities say firefighters have managed to bring most of the fires under control and weather conditions improved on Tuesday as temperatures dropped from 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) to 30 C.

Source: TRTWorld and agencies