A forest fire burning along Croatia's Adriatic coast has caused a mass exodus of tourists, the dpa agency reported.
Several tourist destinations along the coast have been affected by the fire, and part of the Adriatic highway between Omiš and Dubac has been closed to traffic, Croatian media reported today.
There are no reports of casualties related to the fire so far.
The fire broke out about 30 kilometers south of Split, near the coastal villages of Pisak and Marušići, which are popular with tourists.
The fire that broke out on Saturday morning in the area of Pisak and Marušić, east of Omiš, is spreading and firefighters are unable to control it, so they are saving houses that are at risk, said firefighters from Omiš, Croatian Radio and Television (HRT) reports.
"The fire is raging and we have no control over it, we are saving house by house," said Omiš fire brigade commander Višeslav Pešić.
HRT reported that in the previous two days, fires broke out in 17 places from Omiš to the Makarska Riviera, but that the rapid intervention of firefighters put out the fires within a few hours.
Firefighters say that some of the residents of the affected areas were evacuated due to the fire.
Drought, high temperatures and strong winds are fueling the spread of fires through the area's dense pine forests.
The cause of the fire, which destroyed numerous houses and cars, is not yet known.
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