Widespread forest fires wreak havoc in Algeria, 34 confirmed dead
Image credit: Al Jazeera (stillshot)
Destructive forest fires have been burning along Algeria’s Mediterranean coast over the past couple of days, leading to at least 34 fatalities. The fires, which were fueled by strong winds and intense heatwave, spread across multiple provinces and even extended to neighboring Tunisia.
A total of 97 fires have been recorded across 16 prefectures and the worst affected are Béjaïa, Bouira and Jijel. According to national authorities, at least 34 people died and 26 have been injured.
Fires broke out in several provinces on Monday, July 24, 2023, consuming vast expanses of forests, olive groves, and low-lying shrubland. With the winds fanning the flames, the situation escalated rapidly, prompting the deployment of over 8 000 firefighters. By the next day, Algerian civil protection services reported 15 fires were actively burning across eight regions, including Skikda, Jijel, Bouira, Bejaia, Tebessa, Medea, Setif, and El Tarf.
Among the 34 victims reported on Monday were ten soldiers. In a measure to protect civilians, authorities evacuated approximately 1 500 people from their homes. Despite these efforts, the death toll continued to rise as the fires relentlessly advanced.
Strong winds carried the inferno across the border into Tunisia, leading to the closure of two border crossings. Tunisia experienced fires in various regions, including Bizerte, Beja, and Siliana, with temperatures in some cities reaching a sweltering 49 °C (120 °F).
In the northwest region of Tabarka, which borders Algeria, authorities evacuated around 2 500 people in the village of Melloula, Jendouba Province. The priority was to safeguard residential communities and prevent the blaze from reaching an airport in the area, according to Moez Tria, the spokesperson for Tunisian civil protection.
References:
1 Deadly fires rage along Algeria coast, spread to Tunisia – Reuters – July 25, 2023
2 Algeria wildfires – DG ECHO – July 25, 2023
The Watchers team and our contributors bring the latest on extreme weather, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, space weather, and all things science. We're all about making sense of the natural world and keeping you informed on what’s happening. Got a tip or a question? Hit us up using the form at newstips!
Published in the last 24 hours
- Flying glass cut a teacher in Russia but none of her 44 pupils, because when a meteor flashed across the sky in 2013, she told them to get under their desks Epicenter
- A South Dakota man put the widest and heaviest hailstone on US record in his freezer, and a power cut melted part of it before NOAA measured it at 8 inches across and nearly 2 pounds in 2010 Epicenter
- Black kites and brown falcons in northern Australia have been seen snatching smoldering sticks from wildfires, flying them into unburned grass and dropping them, starting new fires that send lizards, rodents and insects running straight toward the waiting birds Epicenter
- A levee protecting a highway north of San Francisco is pocked with animal burrows and only 3 feet wide in places, and a report warns this winter's El Niño could push water over the top Epicenter
