At least 11 children killed in horrific fire at Algerian orphanage

At least 11 children have been killed and 19 others were injured in the fire which took place in the Mohammadia district in Algiers, the Algerian capital

At least 11 children have died while 19 other people were injured in a blaze that broke out at a children’s care home in Algeria.

The incident took place at around 3.30am today at an orphanage in the Mohammadia district of Algiers, the capital of Algeria. Authorities confirmed 11 people have died, with local news outlet Algerie Patriotique reporting that all of them were children.

Algeria’s president Abdelmadjid Tebboune said “several children” were among the dead, according to Vanguard. Ten people have suffered burns of varying severity, while five others with special needs were evacuated from the facility in the north African country.

Two people suffered from respiratory distress and seven were in a state of shock, Algeria’s General Directorate of Civil Protection said. The cause of the fire has not yet been established.

A statement read: “Following the fire that broke out at the Dar Al-Aytam Orphanage in the municipality of Mohammadia, El Harrach district, the Civil Protection services intervened at 3:32 AM to extinguish the blaze. Ten fire trucks, 16 ambulances, two ladder trucks, and the GRIMP (Ground Rock Intervention Unit) were deployed.

“In response to this tragedy, the Director General of Civil Protection, Colonel Boualem Boughlaf, went to the scene to oversee the firefighting operations and monitor the efforts of the Civil Protection personnel and other responding services.”

Images from the scene show thick smoke billowing from the building as fire crews fought to tackle the blaze.

Algeria has been hit by a severe heatwave in recent days, with more than 900 fires reportedly extinguished across the country since July 8.