Air conditioner sparked deadly blaze at children's orphanage - police

What the report says

BBC World News reports that Algerian police have attributed a deadly orphanage fire in Algiers to an electrical spark from a defective air-conditioning unit. The blaze broke out in the early hours of Thursday at a children’s care home in Mohammadia, an eastern suburb of the capital. Authorities said 11 people died and 19 others were injured; President Abdelmadjid Tebboune indicated that children were among those killed.

According to the BBC, forensic investigators said the air conditioner had been operating without interruption during a period of severe summer heat before the fire started. Algeria’s civil protection service has not publicly detailed the ages of the victims or injured. AFP, citing a police report, said a carer at the orphanage was also among the dead. Firefighters fought the blaze for at least three hours, with the BBC reporting that 10 fire engines and 16 ambulances were sent to the site.

Prime Minister Sifi Ghrieb visited survivors at two hospitals, where victims were being treated for burns, smoke inhalation and shock. Authorities also said five children with reduced mobility were rescued safely from the building. The tragedy comes as Algeria faces an intense heatwave and firefighters are also responding to wildfires in the country’s north.

The BBC reports that the fire has prompted public anger and calls for accountability. Opposition party Jil Jadid urged a transparent investigation, legal responsibility for any negligence or safety failures, and wider fire-safety reviews at institutions such as orphanages, care homes, hospitals and schools. Critical and pro-government media commentators also called for the circumstances of the deaths to be established.