Flood-related deaths in Northwestern Algeria from 1966 to 2019

This work aims to analyze flood-related deaths in northwestern Algeria for the period 1966–2019. Devastating and unpredictable floods resulted in more than a thousand deaths in the last two centuries in this area. Despite the severity of the floods in this territory, official databases and studies on flood fatalities are not available. To address this gap, we compile a database consisting of 324 deaths caused by 52 flood events using referenced sources. The data is assessed according to the type of flood event responsible for each death, the temporal and spatial distribution of deaths, and the analysis of victim’s characteristics and incident’s circumstances. The results show that flash floods caused most deaths. There has been a downward trend in the number of flood deaths over the years. A coincidence of high daily rainfall values with high mortality events, as well as increased mortality rates in autumn and during daylight hours. Spatially, flood deaths occurred mainly in sites crossed by rivers and in plain zones with high population density. Analysis indicates that males are more vulnerable to deadly floods than females are; moreover, young children and the elderly are the most exposed age groups. Drowning is the leading fatality cause type, and the fatal incidents occur mostly outdoor among individuals on foot. These results contributed to fill the gaps on flood deaths that reflect the vulnerability of the study area and could help the decision makers to improve the strategy against flood risks.