At least eleven students died and six others were in a critical condition after a fire in a school for the blind in Uganda.
Devastated family members have gathered outside the facility for the visually impaired after the dormitory blaze, which started in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
The fire broke out around 1am at the Salaama School for the Blind in Mukono, about 30km east of the capital Kampala.
The cause is so far unknown, police said in a statement.
At least 27 children were sleeping inside at the time, it has been reported.
The country's education minister Joyce Kaduchu visited the school to speak to parents.
She announced that DNA tests must be carried out on the children's bodies in order to identify them.
"All of us are really heartbroken," she said.
"Our education system gives everyone an opportunity, regardless of what physical challenges one has. We have lost 11 children under very unfortunate circumstances."
The Ugandan Police Force said on Twitter that half a dozen girls are fighting for their lives in hospital.
It wrote: "The cause of the fire is currently unknown but so far 11 deaths as a result of the fire have been confirmed while six are in critical condition and admitted."
Grieving parents were seen crying outside the school.
Jennifer Nassozi's paid tribute to her daughter Nassali, who died in the tragedy.
"Nassali was doing very well in school. She was such a jolly girl," she told the BBC.
"Every time we would come to school at the start of the term, her friends would come running to meet us saying: 'Nassali has come!'".
Deadly school fires, which often tear through dormitories, are relatively common in Uganda and often blamed on faulty wiring, although authorities say some have been started deliberately.
One of the country's worst school fires was at Buddo Junior School in 2008 as 19 children lost their lives.
