The fire started on Friday night, September 4, 2026, at a wedding reception venue in Lingwala, in northern Kinshasa, and continued into the early hours of Saturday.
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According to Lingwala Mayor Norbert Mushinga, the death toll of 22 is provisional and could rise. Several injured victims were taken to health facilities for emergency treatment.
Witnesses said guests struggled to escape as smoke and flames spread through the building. The venue’s narrow corridors and limited emergency access reportedly made evacuation difficult, with several people becoming trapped in the panic.
The cause of the fire has not yet been officially established. Authorities have launched an investigation to determine how the fire started and whether safety regulations were followed at the venue. DR Congo’
s Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Jacquemin Shabani visited the scene and described the incident as a tragedy.
Fact-check: The claim that 22 people were killed in a wedding-party fire in Kinshasa is confirmed, but the death toll remains provisional and the exact cause of the fire is still under investigation.
