Authorities in Yemen’s capital Sanaa said that a crush during the distribution of Ramadan charity killed at least 78 people.
Social media videos of the incident’s aftermath in the city’s Bab-al-Yemen neighbourhood depict chaotic scenes.
According to the Reuters news agency, hundreds of people poured into the school to accept gifts, which averaged about $9 (£7) per individual.
Since ousting the government in 2015, Houthi rebels have been in control of the city.
Those responsible for the distribution have been detained and an investigation is under way, the interior ministry said.
A spokesman for the ministry blamed the crush on the “random distribution” of funds without co-ordination with local officials.
Many people were also injured with 13 in a critical situation, a health official in Sanaa said.
“Women and children were among the dead,” a Houthi security official told AFP news agency on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to journalists.
The Associated Press news agency quotes two eyewitnesses who said Houthi fighters had fired into the air in an attempt at crowd control, apparently striking an electrical wire which resulted in an explosion. This caused panic that led to the crush, they added.
The event happened during the final days of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which is marked by a period of fasting.
Last week a major prisoner swap between warring sides in Yemen started, seen as part of stepped-up efforts to end the devastating eight-year conflict.
Mohamed Ali al-Houthi, head of the Houthi supreme evolutionary committee, blamed Wednesday’s crush on the country’s humanitarian crisis.
“We hold the countries of aggression responsible for what happened and for the bitter reality that the Yemeni people live in because of the aggression and blockade,” he said on Twitter.