Fire crews battle wildfires as Balkan heatwave peaks

Firefighters are battling wildfires across the Balkans as a sweltering heatwave is expected to peak with temperatures climbing to 40C in some areas.

Days of high temperatures and drought conditions continue to drive blazes in several countries, including Serbia, where a man died in a village about 80 kilometres east of Belgrade after he lost control of a fire he lit near his home.

A large forest fire was also out of control in the Ibar valley in central Serbia, with fire crews aided by water-bombing aircraft working through rough terrain to protect nearby villages.

Footage shared by local media showed smoke pouring from the pine forests as flames ripped through hills near homes.

Smoke from a wildfire burning in a nature reserve northeast of the capital could also be seen from the city.

Further south, Albanian authorities had also managed to bring dozens of blazes under control after fires in the south of the country had forced a small number of evacuations.

Extreme fire danger warnings have been issued for most of the region.

Serbian police said the death of the man, who had become overwhelmed by a fire he had lit, was a reminder to take bans seriously.

"This is the most serious consequence of irresponsible behaviour, and I therefore once again call on all citizens to exercise the utmost caution," the police's Luka Causic said.

Days of unrelenting heat had also worsened the drought conditions currently hitting much of Europe.

Several parts of the Danube have drained to record lows, squeezing hydropower generation and oil imports via the river in Serbia.

At the Bezdan monitoring station, at the river's entry point from Croatia and Hungary, the river was continuing to drop after hitting record lows last week.