Flood damage in Algeria, May 2023.
© Civil Protection AlgeriaFlood damage in Algeria, May 2023.
At least 2 people have died and dozens have been rescued or evacuated after flash floods in 9 provinces of Algeria from 24 May 2023.

Civil Protection teams carried out interventions including rescues and evacuations in the provinces of Algiers, Blida, Tébessa, Oum El Bouaghi, Tipaza, Boumerdes, El Tarf, Batna and Guelma. Houses were damaged or destroyed, vehicles swept from roads and transport severely disrupted.

In Guelma Province, a young person died in floodwaters in the municipality of Bou Hachana. Civil Protection rescued at least 30 people trapped by flood waters in the district of Héliopolis.



Fifteen people were rescued after becoming trapped by flooding in agricultural fields in Basbas in El Tarf. Others were rescued after vehicles were stranded in floods in Lazrou Municipality in Batna Province.

Some of the worst of the flooding was reported in Tipaza Province, where roads, vehicles and buildings were destroyed or damaged. A young person died after the wall of a house collapsed.

Algeria and neighbouring Tunisia saw heavy rain earlier in the month following storms on 12 May 2023. One person died after being swept away by floodwaters in the Kasserine Governorate of Tunisia.

In recent days stormy weather has also affected Spain on the opposite side of the Mediterranean Sea. The worst affected areas were in the municipality of Cartagena in the Murcia Region where emergency services participated in a dozen rescues of people trapped in vehicles in the urban area. Dozens of roads were closed. Local authorities also reported damage to beaches. Some areas of the municipality recorded more than 120 mm of rain in just a few hours on 23 May.