At Least 24 Dead in a Bukavu Fire, Two Schools Affected

Bukavu, Sept. 10, 2026 At least 24 people perished in a violent fire that broke out Thursday morning in Bukavu, the capital of South-Kivu province in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The disaster started in the Tshimpunda neighborhood, located in the Kadutu commune, before spreading to several residential buildings and reaching two educational facilities. The AFC-M23 reports 24 fatalities including 19 girls and five boys along with 29 injuries.

According to an AFC-M23 statement, the fire broke out in a densely populated sector of Tshimpunda before rapidly spreading to several homes. The flames subsequently reached two schools: Mosala Primary School in the Kadutu commune, and Nongo Primary School in the neighboring Bagira commune.

Rescue teams were mobilized to battle the flames. The AFC-M23 asserts that their intervention brought the fire under control and prevented it from spreading to other structures. The exact cause of the ignition and the reasons for its rapid propagation remain to be determined.

A Particularly Heavy Human Toll

The casualty figures communicated by the AFC-M23 indicate 24 dead, comprising 19 girls and five boys. Twenty-nine people sustained injuries.

Among the wounded, 21 require intensive care: 17 are receiving treatment at Kadutu General Hospital, and four others at Bukavu Provincial General Hospital. The locations where the remaining wounded are being treated were not specified in the statement.

The AFC-M23, which controls Bukavu and has established a parallel administration there, serves as the primary official source available regarding the toll of this catastrophe.

Two Schools Impacted

The fire also reached two schools, per the AFC-M23: Mosala Primary School in Kadutu and Nongo Primary School in Bagira.

The statement does not specify the extent of the damage inflicted upon the school buildings. Nor does it establish whether students were present inside the institutions at the time of the disaster, or if the recorded casualties were primarily located in the affected residential dwellings.

An assessment of the material damages has yet to be conducted.

Origin of the Fire Remains Unknown

The cause of the fire remains unknown for the time being. The AFC-M23 states that investigations are underway to determine the fire's origin and the circumstances behind its rapid spread through this densely populated neighborhood.

Furthermore, the AFC-M23 calls upon the public to disregard rumors and unverified information circulating on social media.

The AFC-M23 claims to have mobilized assistance for the individuals affected by the fire. The coalition also stated that it is providing support to the victims' families and the injured.

Beyond this specific tragedy, it appears that one of the major causes behind the frequent fires and catastrophes in Bukavu is the non-compliance with urban planning norms in the construction sector.

The various administrations that have succeeded one another at the head of South-Kivu have fostered unprecedented anarchy, where building permits were issued through an organized mafia system without any regard for safety and urban development rules.

Faced with this critical situation, the authorities of the AFC-M23 are striving today to remedy this problem and restore order in this vital sector. The stated objective is to clean up land management and urban governance in order to sustainably prevent similar disasters in the future and protect the population.

This tragedy occurs in a city already severely tested by the security and humanitarian crisis affecting the eastern DRC.

Rescue and damage-assessment operations continue as investigations work to determine the exact origin of the blaze and the circumstances under which it spread to multiple residential dwellings and educational institutions.