At least 22 people were killed in a fire at a wedding party in Congo's capital, Kinshasa, the regional mayor said Saturday. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Associated Press.
The fire started overnight Friday and continued into early Saturday morning in a building in Lingwala in northern Kinshasa. The mayor of Lingwala, Norbert Mushinga, told the Congolese Press Agency that the provisional toll is 22. He noted the toll could rise further.
Several people — some alive and some dead — were laid by the roadside as attendees tried to help the ones who were still alive. The narrow hallways were constricted with people trying to escape the fire. Several other people were injured.
The exact cause of the fire is unconfirmed. "It is a tragedy," Jacquemin Shabani, Congo's deputy prime minister and interior minister, said. The minister visited the site Saturday morning.
Deadly fires are common in densely populated areas of Kinshasa where urban development is not complemented with provisions such as fire services. The fires are common during the dry season and several have occurred this year, according to local media.