Air conditioner spark killed 11 in Algiers children's home fire
What's new: Police traced the blaze to an air conditioner running through a heat wave; 19 people were injured.
An electrical spark from an air conditioning unit caused the fire that killed 11 people at a children's care home in Algiers, Algerian police said after a forensic review. The blaze broke out before dawn in Mohammadia, an eastern suburb of the capital, and injured 19 others. Authorities have not disclosed the ages of the victims, though President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said several children were among the dead and police said a 52-year-old caregiver also died. Civil defense crews sent 10 fire engines and 16 ambulances, while five children with reduced mobility were moved to safety. The deaths have triggered calls for a transparent investigation and wider fire-safety checks at orphanages, hospitals and schools.