At least 49 people have died from dehydration after a truck transporting passengers across a remote stretch of the Sahara Desert broke down in northern Niger, authorities have confirmed.
The victims were reportedly travelling from neighbouring Mali after attending a religious gathering when their vehicle became stranded more than 80 kilometres west of Assamaka, a major border town between Niger and Algeria.
Officials said only two passengers survived the ordeal. The survivors managed to trek through the desert to Assamaka, where they alerted authorities to the tragedy.
According to the Agadez regional government, the truck had deviated from its planned route after leaving the Malian town of Telhandek before suffering a mechanical failure in one of the harshest parts of the desert.
Despite repeated efforts by the driver, his assistant and several passengers to repair the vehicle, they were unable to get it moving again.
The travellers soon found themselves trapped in an unforgiving environment marked by scorching temperatures and a lack of access to water or other essential supplies.
“The travellers found themselves trapped in the heart of a hostile environment where extreme temperatures and the absence of supply points made survival extremely difficult,” the governor’s office said in a statement.
Authorities said many of the victims succumbed to dehydration as they waited for help, with dozens of bodies later discovered under and around the stranded vehicle.
Emergency responders were subsequently dispatched to the scene to recover the bodies. The victims were later buried in mass graves near the area where the tragedy occurred.
The incident highlights the dangers faced by travellers crossing vast desert regions in the Sahel, where mechanical failures and harsh weather conditions can quickly turn deadly.
