A traffic accident left 34 dead and 12 injured in the early hours of Wednesday morning in Tamanrasset province in the south of the country, Algerian Civil Protection reported.
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The Civil Protection Statement specifies that the deceased were burned in the fire that followed the collision between two vehicles. A passenger bus collided with a van, causing an explosion and a fire.
The traffic accident occurred at about 04.15 (local time) in the Algerian Sahara, more than 1,500 kilometers from the capital.
Ambulances and rescue teams rushed to the scene and transferred the injured to nearby hospitals for treatment. The bus involved in the accident was carrying passengers between the towns of Adrar and Tamanrasset.
National Gendarmerie detectives have opened an investigation. According to the National Center for Prevention and Road Safety, high speed is the main cause of traffic accidents in Algeria.
More than 90% of traffic accidents in the country are due to human error, mainly driver negligence. Other causes of traffic accidents include the poor condition of roads and cars and environmental factors, the agency notes.
A total of 22,980 traffic accidents were recorded in 2022, leaving more than 3,400 people dead and 30,400 injured, according to Nacef Abdelhakim, head of the government agency.