A major fire broke out at the “Le Parisien” commercial building in downtown Bujumbura on Friday morning, marking the seventh major commercial blaze in Burundi in 2026. Vice President Prosper Bazombanza called for safety reviews and a potential ban on charcoal irons in the city center.
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A fire tore through a multi-story commercial building in downtown Bujumbura on Friday morning, marking the seventh major blaze to strike markets and commercial sites in Burundi this year. The incident prompted Vice President Prosper Bazombanza to travel to the scene and call for a review of fire-safety practices in the capital’s crowded trading district.
The fire broke out around 7:00 a.m. at the building known locally as “Le Parisien,” located in the same central district that houses the Ndayizamba Gallery shopping complex, according to witnesses and authorities. Word of the blaze spread first through social media before authorities were formally notified, Bazombanza said.
“It was around 7 o’clock that we learned through social media that the building … had started to catch fire,” Bazombanza told reporters at the scene. “Very quickly, we alerted all the relevant services responsible for addressing this kind of situation, including the security and administrative authorities.”
The vice president said the governor of Bujumbura, the Minister of the Interior, and other officials mobilized quickly once the alarm was raised. He credited firefighters and security personnel with containing the blaze before it could spread to neighboring buildings.
“We are extremely grateful for the rapid intervention of our security forces because they were able to bring the fire under control,” Bazombanza said. He added that the swift response likely prevented the fire from reaching adjacent structures, though a transformer and trees near the building appeared to have sustained damage.
No casualties had been reported as of Friday, and the cause of the fire has not been officially determined.
Charcoal Irons Under Scrutiny
Bazombanza said authorities suspect the fire may be linked to a common but risky practice in Bujumbura’s commercial district: street vendors and tailors who press clothes using charcoal-heated irons.
“We nevertheless ask the administration to study and assess whether, in the future, we should continue allowing people who iron clothes using charcoal-fired irons to operate in the city center,” he said. “If that was the cause of some of these fires, you will understand that it is very important to continue examining this issue.”
The vice president also renewed a call for traders and building owners to take out insurance, noting that Burundi has more than 15 licensed insurance companies.
“We invite everyone, especially all traders, to take out insurance so that, when fires like this occur, they can at least be compensated,” he said, adding that reinsurance arrangements exist to help compensate building owners as well.
A Year Marked by Fires
Friday’s blaze extends a pattern of fires that has alarmed traders and civil society groups across Burundi in 2026. In just under eight months, the country has recorded at least six other major fires at markets and commercial sites nationwide:
