Wildfires have swept through the municipality of Béjaïa in Algeria, and the area of the flames has expanded towards populated areas in the regions of Ithbāz and Boulimat up to the border with the municipality of Touggourt, according to Algerian media.

Firefighting teams in Algeria continue their efforts to extinguish the fires, while citizens have been forced to assist civil protection personnel in preventing the flames from advancing. The director of civil protection in Algeria for the province of Béjaïa reported that a fire has erupted in one of the forests in the province, and populated areas are being evacuated to avoid any risks.

The director of civil protection in Algeria confirmed in press statements that a mobile column affiliated with the province of Béjaïa and support columns from the provinces of Bouira, Sétif, and Bordj Bou Arreridj are being mobilized, clarifying that no casualties or material losses have been recorded so far.

He added that the civil protection services are working alongside the Algerian National Army to confront any risks that may arise from this fire.

The statement from the General Directorate of Civil Protection in Algeria indicated that the civil protection teams in the province have been reinforced by several additional columns coming from various neighboring provinces, especially the mobile column from the province of Tizi Ouzou and the mobile columns from the provinces of Bouira, Sétif, and Bordj Bou Arreridj, as well as the mobile column from the National Training and Intervention Unit.

The statement reported that the affected areas are the Al-Sakht region, the Boulimat region, and the Touggourt region, and that local authorities have begun evacuating these areas of residents after failing to control the flames. The statement also mentioned that the extinguishing operation is still ongoing at this moment.

Algeria has witnessed several wildfires this year, and according to statistics from the Ministry of Interior on wildfires in Algeria 2023, there have been 97 recorded fires in forests across 16 provinces, amid efforts by the Algerian army and civil protection forces to control the wildfires, including the use of Beriev 200 aircraft belonging to the army and others hired for firefighting efforts, along with 8,000 firefighters and 529 vehicles of various sizes involved in the extinguishing operations.