Holidaymakers escaped unharmed as a blaze engulfed part of a luxury private island resort in the Maldives.
The fire at the eco-friendly Gili Lankanfushi resort destroyed seven over-water villas after starting at around 11pm local time last night, according to local reports.
Strong winds allowed the fire to spread quickly through the thatch-roofed villas, according to The Maldives National Defence Force.
Fire and rescue officers were able to quell the fire at about 5am and no one was injured.
The fire is believed to have started in a stand-alone villa complex called the Crusoe Residence, where stays cost $5,000 a night, and then spread.
Resort staff were alerted to the flames by a fishing vessel near the Lankanfushi island.
The cause of the fire at the resort, which is made up of 45 over-water villas, is not yet known.
The resort tweeted: “At 11pm this evening on 2nd January a fire broke out at Gili Lankanfushi. We are co-operating with the local authorities who have contained the fire and to minimise the damage.
“Thankfully all of our guests and hosts have been accounted for and are being evacuated from the island with alternative accommodation being arranged by Gili Lankanfushi.
“The cause of the incident is not yet known and it is too early to access the extent of damage however a full investigation will of course be launched soon.
“We will aim to provide a further update about the incident on social media as soon as we can.”
Maldives tourism minister Ali Waheed visited the resort following the incident. Gili Lankafushi is located 20 minutes from the capital city of Male by speedboat.
The resort was ranked among the top five best hotels in the world by TripAdvisor last year, and as the number one hotel in Maldives. Kuoni describes Gili Lankanfushi as one of its favourite hotels.