Dozens die of thirst after truck breaks down in Sahara

Dozens of people have died of thirst in the Sahara desert after a truck carrying passengers returning from a religious festival broke down in an isolated area of Niger.

Authorities said 49 people were travelling back from Mali after taking part in Eid celebrations when their vehicle became stranded in a remote part of the Sahara with no mobile signal, Daily Mail reports.

It was reported that the truck was carrying around 100 passengers from Niger and that the driver had become lost before the vehicle finally came to a stop after several days of travel.

Trapped in what officials described as “the heart of a hostile environment”, the vehicle was unable to restart, and passengers began dying of dehydration after their water supplies were exhausted.

The region is known for extreme temperatures, where the absence of resources makes survival extremely difficult.

Two survivors, identified by local newspaper Actuniger as Mohamed Bachir Souley and Issa Omar, managed to walk more than 50 kilometres to reach a water source.

From there, they continued to Assamaka, a major crossing point between Niger and Algeria near the Mali border, where they alerted authorities to the tragedy.

A response team was dispatched and later buried the victims in a mass grave at the site. Many of the deceased were found around and beneath the broken-down truck.

The Agadez governorate confirmed in a Facebook post that 49 people “died of thirst in a remote area more than 80 kilometres (50 miles) west of Assamaka”.

“Deprived of water and unable to repair the vehicle despite the efforts of the driver, his assistants and the passengers, the travellers found themselves trapped in the heart of a hostile environment where extreme temperatures and the absence of supply points make survival extremely difficult,” the governorate added.

The desert region is a known transit route for migrants attempting to reach Europe from African countries, and many have previously died from thirst or starvation in the harsh conditions.

By Vafa Guliyeva