Tragedy in Bukavu: School Fire Claims More Than 20 Children

A blaze broke out in two schools in the Kadutu commune of Bukavu and left more than twenty children in the red‑hot mass of destroyed buildings.

At least twenty‑four schoolchildren are feared dead, and several adults also died in the conflagration, according to a senior official in the region.

Fire crews fought the flames until the afternoon, but smoke still rose from the charred rubble and corrugated metal. Survivors were rushed to nearby hospitals, where footage shows children lying on ward beds, injured and in pain.

The fire felled around three hundred houses, while the cause remains unclear.

Bulky social media images captured young children lying motionless on the ground amid the rubble.

Authorities operating under the M23 regime say they will provide a provisional death toll in the evening.

The Kinshasa government posted a statement on X that expressed deep sorrow and pledged to investigate school safety while ensuring continuity of learning.

The incident follows a recent fire at a wedding hall in Kinshasa that caused a stampede death toll.

Following that tragedy, the national government instituted stricter safety measures and dispatched teams to enforce safety standards at public venues.