A tragic fire at a children’s care home in Algeria has resulted in the loss of 11 young lives and left 19 others injured. The incident occurred early this morning at an orphanage in the Mohammadia district of Algiers, the nation’s capital. According to reports, all the victims were children.
Algeria’s President Abdelmadjid Tebboune confirmed that “several children” were among those who perished in the blaze. Ten individuals sustained burn injuries of varying degrees, while five individuals with special needs were safely evacuated from the facility. Two people experienced respiratory distress, and seven were in a state of shock, as stated by Algeria’s General Directorate of Civil Protection. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Emergency response teams swiftly arrived at the Dar Al-Aytam Orphanage in Mohammadia to extinguish the fire. The operation involved ten fire trucks, 16 ambulances, two ladder trucks, and the GRIMP unit. The Director General of Civil Protection, Colonel Boualem Boughlaf, personally oversaw the firefighting efforts on-site.
Images from the scene depict thick smoke engulfing the building as firefighters battled the flames. Algeria has been grappling with a severe heatwave, with numerous fires extinguished across the country since early July.
