Wedding party fire in Congo's capital Kinshasa kills 22

At least 22 people died when fire tore through a wedding party in Lingwala, northern Kinshasa, with several others injured, according to the area’s mayor.

The blaze began Friday night and continued into early Saturday. People trying to flee crowded the building’s narrow hallways, while others carried victims to the roadside. Some of those laid outside were alive, while others had died.

Norbert Mushinga, the mayor of Lingwala, gave the provisional death toll to the Congolese Press Agency and warned that it could rise. The cause of the fire remained unconfirmed.

Congo’s deputy prime minister and interior minister, Jacquemin Shabani, visited the site on Saturday morning and called the incident “a tragedy.”

Deadly fires frequently occur in Kinshasa’s densely populated areas, where urban development often lacks basic provisions such as fire services. Local media have reported several fires in the capital this year, particularly during the dry season.

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It is a tragedy.