Horrifying moment Brit tourists watch on as flames engulf hotel on Croatian island before panicked escape by boats

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THIS is the horrifying moment British trippers who escaped a terrifying wildfire watch on as their hotel erupted in a fiery inferno.

Shocking footage has emerged showing a huge crowd of tourists waiting to be rescued as the night sky lit up bright orange and filled with smoke.

Desperate holidaymakers can be seen stood in the dark as their forest retreat burned on the island of Brac, Croatia.

Some even jumped in the water to escape the flames, as burning embers fell on guests.

Scores of Brits fled to a flotilla of around 50 Dunkirk-style rescue boats mustered by local fishermen and boat trip bosses after a general alert was issued.

Holidaymaker Trevor Rwifght, a 62-year-old IT manager at the resort with wife Sharon, 68, from Stevenage, Herts said: “I’ll never forget feeling the heat from the fire closing in as we waited for the rescue boats.”

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“But when we got on a boat to escape we finally got a text message telling us there was no threat to the hotel and everything was okay.

“We looked up as we got the text and could see that the hotel was on fire and surrounded by flames – it was unbelievable.”

Angela – travelling with a British travel company with her builder husband Lee, 52 – is currently in another hotel on Brac waiting for a flight home.

She added: “The customer service was nothing short of abysmal.

“People could have been killed by the fire or drowned trying to escape and their people didn’t have a clue what was going on and never contacted us as we escaped.”

Other trippers told The Sun how they fled as flames breached the hotel perimeter after being told to stay in their rooms and “relax with a drink.”

Customers of another travel firm now safe back in the UK revealed today how they received a text message after escaping the inferno telling them: “We’re sorry you decided to curtail your holiday”.

But the UK-based company later sent out a message declaring: “We are so sorry that you experienced this and understand that, following the evacuation, you made the decision to curtail your holiday.”

Trippers still in shock after the drama believe the wording is a legal move aimed at reducing compensation payouts.