At least 20 killed in school fire in rebel-held DR Congo city

A fire in Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC) rebel-controlled city of Bukavu has killed at least 20 people, including students, according to local media and medical sources.

United Nations Radio Okapi, quoting local authorities, said 20 people were killed and an unspecified number injured on Thursday when a fire broke out in the Chimpunda district of Bukavu, South Kivu’s provincial capital.

The report said the incident took place at Ujamaa and Furaha primary schools and a nearby settlement at about 8am local time.

The fire was “followed by a violent stampede that forced students to trample over one another or look for a dangerous way out; many of them fainted and others lost consciousness”, local leader Patrice Buduge told the AFP news agency.

Dunia Masumbuko Bwenge, an official from the rebel administration, told the Reuters news agency 24 people had died – 19 ‌girls and five boys.

Bwenge, who is vice governor of South Kivu province in the government appointed by the Rwanda-backed AFC/M23 movement, added that 29 others were injured.

Christophe Zigashane, a nurse at a local clinic, told AFP at least 14 children were among those killed.

“We received around 50 students, including several teachers, in a critical state of asphyxia,” he said. “Among them, 10 were dead and four others died at the scene. That makes a total of 14 deaths, all under 10 years old.”

Footage verified by Al Jazeera showed the blaze consuming a number of houses, amid a spread of flames that reached the two schools.

Local media said the blaze also ravaged between 300 and 500 homes and a clinic.

It added that the death toll remained provisional, and the cause of the fire was yet to be established.

Several people were treated for smoke inhalation, with some said to be in critical condition.

Congolese media noted that Bukavu has experienced several fires in recent days, including a blaze that broke out last Sunday and destroyed more than 45 houses.

Bukavu has been controlled by AFC/M23 rebels since the group ⁠staged a lightning offensive in eastern DRC last ⁠year.