BUKAVU, Congo (AP) — A fire on Thursday in Bukavu, eastern Congo, killed at least 24 students, the rebel administration that controls the city said.

The spokesperson for the M23 rebel group, Lawrence Kanyuka, said 19 girls and five boys were killed, adding that 29 people were being treated at local medical facilities.

The fire started at a house before spreading to two adjoining schools, local neighborhood administrator Moïse Lubala told The Associated Press.

He said several students were trapped inside Furaha secondary school and some suffocated.

A mix of boys and girls of different ages, students at Furaha and at Ujamaa primary school, were brought to the Nyamulagira BDOM health center in their school uniforms, nurse Ciza Jean-Baptiste told the AP.

Medical staff were struggling to keep track of the exact number of injured because there were so many, he said.

“The exit was too narrow, so some students began jumping through windows while others rushed toward the door. As everyone tried to force their way out, students were pushed over and trampled on,” said Lubala.

The cause of the fire is not known, but the neighborhood where the fire started is densely populated and most houses are made out of wood, according to Lubala.

Congo’s government struggles to exert control over the east of the country. M23 rebels, backed by Rwanda, took control of Bukavu in February 2025. More than 100 armed groups are vying for control of eastern Congo’s trillions of dollars in mineral wealth that’s critical for much of the world’s technology.

Health services are under severe strain as the region grapples with the deadliest Ebola outbreak in history that has killed more than 3,300 people, with more than 6,800 confirmed cases recorded.