A passenger bus travelling from the northeastern Algerian city of Sétif to the capital Algiers plunged into a deep ravine on Friday morning, killing at least 27 people and injuring dozens more in what authorities describe as the deadliest road accident in Algeria in recent years. The bus skidded off the road in the locality of El Karma, near the coastal town of Boumerdes, approximately 50 kilometres east of Algiers, for reasons that remain under investigation. Civil Protection teams responded to the scene at around 9:40am local time, with a steady flow of ambulances transporting the injured to nearby hospitals, including the University Hospital of Boumerdes.
Algeria's health minister, Mohamed Seddik Ait Messaoudene, confirmed the initial toll and warned that the death toll could still rise. Among the victims are children, according to President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who has declared three days of national mourning. In a strongly worded statement, Tebboune described those responsible as "road criminals and terrorists" and vowed that the justice system would "crack down with an iron fist and without any leniency" once the investigation is concluded. Prime Minister Sifi Ghrieb visited some of the injured at hospital.
The cause of the accident has not yet been officially determined, though Algeria's road safety authorities have long identified human factors — particularly speeding — as the leading cause of crashes in the country. Last year, 3,838 people died and more than 37,000 were injured in traffic accidents across Algeria. The country has seen a string of serious bus accidents in recent months: last August, a bus plunged into a ravine near Algiers killing 18 people, and in December, 14 people died when a bus overturned in the remote southern region of Béchar.
Friday's disaster highlights an ongoing road safety crisis in Algeria, a large North African country of roughly 45 million people where long intercity bus routes are a primary mode of transport. The frequency and severity of recent accidents have placed pressure on authorities to address systemic issues in road safety enforcement and vehicle maintenance. The investigation into the El Karma crash is expected to determine whether driver error, mechanical failure, or other factors were to blame.