DRC: Bukavu residents reel in aftermath of deadly school blaze

At least 24 people, all schoolchildren, have died and 29 others have been injured after a fire tore through a densely populated neighbourhood in Bukavu, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, on Thursday morning.

The blaze began in a home in Cimpunda, in Bukavu's Kadutu municipality, before spreading rapidly through neighbouring buildings, reaching two primary schools and destroying more than 300 homes, according to a provisional toll from local authorities.

The victims included 19 girls and five boys, all of them students.

The fire broke out at around 8 a.m., when residents in the densely packed neighbourhood were beginning their day. Flames quickly jumped from one structure to another, fuelled by the close proximity of homes and buildings.

The blaze eventually reached Ujamaa and Furaha primary schools, sending students and residents scrambling for safety as smoke filled the area.

Zihaliwa Mweze, a resident of South Kivu, described the chaos as people tried to escape.

“When the flames started here, at the school, we heard people calling for help as we were trying to get out. We went back inside. The flames rose and spread until they engulfed the whole neighbourhood.”

Mweze said residents were still working to extinguish the remaining flames and did not yet know what had caused the fire.

Children among the dead

The death toll was particularly devastating because all those killed were schoolchildren.

Local authorities said 24 children had died, while 29 other people were injured. Some victims are believed to have died from smoke inhalation, while others were reportedly caught in the crush as crowds tried to flee the burning buildings.

Medical teams were mobilised as victims began arriving at health facilities in Bukavu.

Jean-Baptiste Ciza, a nurse at BDOM, said several children were already dead when they reached the medical centre.

“Among the children who arrived already dead, I counted around ten,” he said, adding that other victims who were still alive were evacuated to Berna Hospital before being transferred to larger hospitals.

The injured were subsequently taken to different medical facilities depending on the severity of their injuries.

More than 300 homes destroyed

The fire also caused extensive damage across Cimpunda.

More than 300 homes were destroyed, according to the provisional assessment by local authorities. Families lost houses, personal belongings and, in many cases, the livelihoods they depended on.

Residents, emergency workers and other responders spent hours fighting the flames and searching the affected area for possible victims.

The scale of the destruction was amplified by the neighbourhood's high population density. Many homes in Cimpunda are built close together, leaving little space between structures and making it easier for flames to spread from one building to the next.

Limited access in some parts of the city can also make it difficult for emergency crews to reach affected areas quickly.

Questions over fire safety

Thursday's disaster has renewed concerns over fire prevention and emergency preparedness in Bukavu, a city that has experienced repeated urban fires.

The speed with which the Cimpunda blaze spread from a single home to schools and hundreds of houses is likely to fuel questions about building conditions, access for emergency services and fire-safety measures in densely populated neighbourhoods.

Authorities have not yet established the exact cause of the fire.

Further investigations and a full assessment of the damage are expected to provide more information about how the blaze began, why it spread so rapidly and whether the death toll could rise.

For families in Cimpunda, the immediate reality is already devastating: 24 children dead, 29 people injured and hundreds of homes destroyed.

As residents begin clearing the ruins and helping displaced families, Bukavu is left to confront the aftermath of one of its most devastating recent urban fires.