Belgrade, 21 July 2022 (dpa/MIA) — Forest fires in Slovenia's Karst region raged closer to several villages as they burned for a fifth day running on Thursday. The authorities sounded the alarm for the villages of Vojscica, Temnica and Novela as the flames drew dangerously close, 24ur.com news site reported. Officials had evacuated four villages the day before. Some 1,000 firefighters and 100 volunteers were deployed on Thursday, the report said. Assistance also came from abroad, with helicopters from Croatia, Austria and Slovakia aiding firefighting efforts alongside four Slovenian helicopters. "Slovenia is facing one of the biggest wildfires in its history," Slovenian European Commissioner Janez Lenarčič tweeted and thanked the countries providing support. "This is EU solidarity in action," he said. The Karst area is a high plateau in western Slovenia with many forests, meadows, underground rivers and caves that is popular among hikers. The evacuations came amid a searing heatwave in Europe, where there are many wildfires, made worse by dry conditions and a persistent drought. [caption id="attachment_1454123" align="alignnone" width="1024"] 20 July 2022, Italy, Trieste: A helicopter flies to a firefighting operation near Trieste, where a large forest fire is raging. Photo: Luka Dakskobler/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa[/caption] The Italian fire brigade continued to fight blazing forest fires in several regions on Wednesday night. In the north-eastern region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, the fire brigade renewed efforts to extinguish fires near Doberdò and Aurisina on the border with Slovenia, the fire brigade announced on Thursday. Two firefighting planes provided aerial support. A video showed the firefighters protecting a gas tank from the flames. Due to the fires, a section of the A4 motorway between Venice and Trieste remained closed on Thursday. In Tuscany, a gas tank explosion could not be avoided amid a wildfire in the municipality of Massarosa near Lucca on Tuesday night, according to regional president Eugenio Giani. On Thursday, around 100 firefighters were deployed in the area, supported by three firefighting helicopters and three Canadair firefighting aircraft. About 570 people have so far been evacuated from their homes in several locations in the municipality, according to the authorities. The strong winds are helping to spread the fires in Massarosa, and around 870 hectares of forest have already been affected by the flames, the region said. In the municipality, the forest fire that had been blazing there for several days continued to spread on Wednesday due to strong winds. Around 870 hectares have already been affected by the flames, the popular holiday region announced. [caption id="attachment_1454122" align="alignnone" width="1024"] 20 July 2022, Italy, Trieste: Helicopters fly to a firefighting operation near Trieste, where a large forest fire is raging. Photo: Luka Dakskobler/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa[/caption] The Italian civil protection authority reported on Wednesday evening that it had received 25 requests for assistance from firefighting aircraft. The authority deployed its planes in numerous regions, including the islands of Sardinia and Sicily, as well as in Tuscany and Friuli-Venezia Giulia. The severe forest fires on the French Atlantic coast south of Bordeaux have calmed down somewhat. They are almost under control, the responsible prefecture announced on Twitter. The fires in Landiras and La Teste-de-Buch hardly spread during the night from Wednesday to Thursday. Some resurgent fires had been contained by the fire brigade, the authority added. The forest fires that broke out more than a week ago destroyed more than 20,600 hectares of land. Thousands of people had to leave their homes as a precaution.