The city, which is the capital of South Kivu province, has been hit by torrential rainfall which has caused landslides that have buried several houses.
In the Ndedere district of the city, the neighbourhood chief Albert Migabo Nyagaza told AFP that "a father, his five children and two grandchildren (were) buried by the earth and their house destroyed".
He said that the landslide occurred around midnight Sunday.
"We heard a loud noise like thunder," said local resident Medo Igunzi Munene.
He added that he saw "the wall of a house collapse onto another below where eight people were sleeping."
In the neighbouring district of Panzi, at least seven people died in similar circumstances.
Bukavu has been hit by a series of landslides and building collapses this year.
The overcrowded city on the southern shore of Lake Kivu was originally designed for around 100,000 residents by Belgian settlers.
Today there are around two million inhabitants, although the lack of a census makes it difficult to confirm the precise population.
In October the United Nations said a record 6.9 million people had been internally displaced in the DRC, due to a combination of conflict, insecurity and disasters such as floods and landslides.
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