34 People Die in Wildfires as Heat Wave Hits North Africa

Illustration of water distribution to anticipate drought in Africa. (Wikimedia Commons/Oxfam)

JAKARTA - The death toll from forest fires that ravaged parts of Algeria rose to 34 people, including 10 soldiers on Monday, the Interior Ministry said as a heat wave spread to northern Africa and southern Europe.

So far, about 1,500 people have been evacuated. Meanwhile, about 8,000 firefighters were struggling to control the fire, authorities said.

The Interior Ministry said it was continuing fire suppression operations in the Boumerdes, Bouira, Tizi Ouzou, Jijel, Bejaia, and Skikda regions, reported Reuters July 25.

Related to the cause of forest fires, local authorities have launched a judicial investigation.

It is known, a major heat wave hit North Africa with temperatures of 49 Celsius (120 Fahrenheit) recorded in several cities in neighboring Tunisia.

In Tunisia, a forest fire engulfed the border town of Melloula. Witnesses said the fires that broke out in the mountainous area had reached people's homes in the town, forcing hundreds of families to flee.

A civil protection official said they had evacuated hundreds of residents of the town by land and sea, using fishing boats and coast guard vessels.