Mother, daughter flee for safety down road surrounded by flames in Sicily

Mother, daughter narrowly escape Sicily wildfires A mother and daughter driving back to their home got a firsthand experience of the wildfires that are tearing through Sicily.

As a scorching heat wave leaves Southern Europe sweltering, the Italian island of Sicily is dealing with wildfires and heat-related deaths.

Video captured earlier this week gives a glimpse at what it's like to be on the fire line.

The video shows the view as a mother and daughter drive to their home in Carlentini, a town in the Sicilian province of Syracuse. The road is surrounded by towering flames and massive plumes of smoke.

Centamore Natalia Mariagrazia, who recorded the video, told Storyful of the treacherous drive: "Going further on we noticed that the situation was only going to get worse, but we could not stop anymore."

Mariagrazia added that her mother "cold-bloodedly handled the situation" while they were in it. The woman can then be seen in the video bursting into tears after reaching a safe distance from the blaze.

Sicily’s President Renato Schifani said the scorching heat and devastating wildfires left the island dealing with one of the worst natural disasters "in decades." While Italy’s south has been grappling with wildfires, the north is struggling with severe storms.

Officials in Sicily have confirmed that so far three people have died due to wildfires this year.