The death toll is increasing in forest fires in Algeria! Prime Minister announced: Most of the dead are vacationers

It is struggling with forest fires in Algeria. In a written statement made by the Civil Defense Presidency of the Algerian Interior, it was stated that fires broke out at 118 points in 21 cities in the last 24 hours.

Emphasizing that the extinguishing works continue at full speed from the air and on the ground, it was stated in the statement that the number of people killed in the fires increased to 41 and the number of injured to 160. It was stated that 3 suspects aged between 40 and 70 were detained due to the fire in the east of El Tarif province and will be referred to the judicial authorities.

THE TEMPERATURE EXCEEDED 47 DEGREES

In a statement on Algerian official television, Algerian Interior Minister Kemal Belcud announced that 24 people died in the city of et-Tarif on the Tunisian border, and 2 people died in the city of Setif in the north. Belcud pointed out that the air temperatures in the country have exceeded 47 degrees in recent weeks and stated that 2 thousand 400 hectares of forest and maquis area were ash in the fires. Belcud noted that thousands of personnel were fighting fires from the air and from the ground.

MOST OF THE LIVES ARE HOLIDAYS

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Eymen Bin Abdurrahman went to the city of Et-Tarif to inspect the fire extinguishing works on the order of President Abdulmecid Tebbun. In his statement to the press, Bin Abdurrahman said that the majority of those who lost their lives so far were not residents of the region, but holidaymakers.

WIND MAKES FIGHTING WORK DIFFICULT

Arguing that there was no defect in the extinguishing works, the Prime Minister noted that it became difficult to control the fires due to the wind, whose speed reached 91 kilometers per hour. The Algerian Ministry of Justice announced that a judicial investigation has been launched into the allegations of the deliberate setting of the fires.

In a written statement from the Gendarmerie Command of the Ministry of Defense, it was stated that some roads in the northeastern provinces affected by forest fires are still closed to traffic. (AA)