11 Killed as Fire Engulfs Algeria Orphanage

(Fire Engulfs Algeria Orphanage. Photo by DW)

At least 11 people, including children, were killed and 19 others injured after a fire swept through an orphanage in the Mohammadia suburb of Algiers early Thursday, according to Algerian authorities. 

The blaze broke out around 3:00 to 3:30 a.m. at the two-storey childcare facility on the eastern outskirts of the capital, prompting an emergency response from firefighters and rescue teams. Algeria’s Civil Protection agency said the death toll remains provisional and that the cause of the fire is still under investigation.

While the exact ages of the victims have not been officially disclosed, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune later confirmed that several children were among those killed, with authorities stating that no adult fatalities had been reported.

Civil Protection communications chief Lt. Col. Nassim Bernaoui said rescue workers evacuated five children with limited mobility from the building and transported several injured victims to a specialist burns hospital.

Nearby residents described chaotic scenes as firefighters battled the flames before dawn.

One resident, 41-year-old Abdessalam Merrah, recalled hearing fire engines arrive alongside the screams of children, saying he and others assisted as best they could before being told that 11 people had already died.

Witnesses reported seeing scorch marks around the building’s windows the following morning, and said firefighters had to cut through metal window bars with a chainsaw during rescue efforts.

Rachid Belhadj, head of the forensic medicine department at Mustapha Bacha Hospital, told local television that some victims had suffered severe burns, with certain bodies requiring DNA testing for identification due to the extent of the damage.

President Tebboune, who was on an official visit to Berlin at the time, expressed condolences over the tragedy, saying he had learned with a heart submitted to God’s will of the deaths and injuries suffered by children at the childcare institution.

Algerian state television showed Prime Minister Sifi Ghrieb visiting survivors receiving treatment at two hospitals in Algiers.

The tragedy occurred on Algeria’s National Children’s Day and amid an intense heatwave that has fuelled widespread wildfires across the country.

According to the Civil Protection agency, 932 fires were recorded nationwide between July 8 and July 15, with most now extinguished, though several remain active.

One municipal worker died while fighting a wildfire in the northern province of Sétif on Wednesday, local authorities said.

Civil Protection has deployed more than 19,000 personnel, over 700 fire trucks, six helicopters and 12 water-bombing aircraft in response, while residents have been evacuated from parts of Bejaia, Guelma, Bouira and Mila provinces.

Northern Algeria experiences wildfires every summer, with authorities attributing their growing frequency and intensity to prolonged drought and climate change.

Officials have also alleged that some fires were deliberately set, with several suspects arrested in recent years.