At least 43 people have been killed in massive fires that have destroyed forest and urban areas in northeastern Algeria in recent days, according to a new report released Monday by authorities.
According to the Algerian radio, the gendarmerie also announced the arrest of 13 people suspected of taking part in these arson attacks, which injured about 200 people, most of them seriously burned.
A previous report stated that 38 people were killed in these fires, which affected 14 provinces, particularly the El Tarf region in the extreme northeast, close to the Tunisian border.
The fact that the national gendarmerie command stated that “the process of identifying the corpses continues” indicates that the number of victims may increase.
About 10,000 hectares – more than 10% of the surface of El Kala National Park (PNEK) in northeastern Algeria, classified by UNESCO as a biodiversity reserve – have been destroyed by recent fires, an expert told AFP on Saturday.
Every year the north of Algeria is affected by forest fires, a phenomenon highlighted by the impact of climate change.
Experts also drew attention to the shortcomings of the fire-fighting system due to the lack of water bombers and poor management of forests.
The summer of 2021 has been the deadliest in the country so far. At least 90 people died in the wildfires that ravaged the north of the country last year and destroyed more than 100,000 hectares of forest.
source: Noticias
