‘As if the sky had fallen’: School roof collapse kills at least 34 children and a teacher

Peshawar: The roof of a private school collapsed in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar, killing at least 34 children and a teacher and injuring more than 50 other people in the deadliest building collapse ever in the country, authorities and a hospital official said.

Most of the children killed or injured at Al-Khair school on Thursday were between 6 and 12 years old, while the oldest was 14, Lady Reading Hospital spokesperson Mohammad Asim said.

Some of the injured were in critical condition, he said. The hospital declared an emergency as medical staff treated the wounded.

Hours after the collapse in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, emergency services spokesperson Bilal Faizi said that everyone trapped beneath the rubble had been pulled out and crews had cleared debris.

He said the roofs of two classrooms collapsed when second- and third-grade children were in them with their teachers. Faizi said ambulances and disaster management personnel arrived from a nearby facility within five minutes of being alerted.

Nearly 100 rescuers eventually joined the operation, he said. Panicked, grieving parents were trying to help when crews arrived, Faizi said. He credited the rapid evacuation with saving at least 40 lives. More than a dozen children suffered minor injuries, he said.

Building collapses are common in Pakistan, where construction standards are often poorly enforced. Many structures are built with substandard materials, and safety regulations are frequently ignored to reduce costs.

One teacher said it felt as though the sky had fallen

Hundreds of mourners later gathered at Rehman Baba cemetery for mass funeral prayers as grief gripped the neighbourhood and announcements echoed from mosque loudspeakers, urging residents to join in prayers for those killed.

Residents said most of the children killed lived in the Dir Colony neighbourhood, where the school is located, leaving them unsure which bereaved family to visit first to offer condolences.

Ambulances were seen leaving the hospital to bring the children’s bodies home as mourners wept and wailed.

Mahwish Zaman, an injured teacher speaking from a hospital bed, said the school had about 1200 students enrolled in nursery through fifth grade. She said she was in her classroom when the roof collapsed and felt as if the sky had fallen. She regained consciousness in the hospital.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi expressed sorrow over the collapse and sought a report from the relevant authorities about the cause. He directed officials to provide the best possible medical care to the injured children.

According to witnesses, residents were among the first to reach the school in a congested neighbourhood in central Peshawar. Rescue workers arrived within minutes of being alerted, according to accounts from the scene.

A resident, Samiullah Khan, said that he rushed to the school after learning of the collapse and helped rescue three girls. Khan said his son, who attends the school, survived because he had stepped out of his classroom for a drink of water.

Another resident, Mohammad Khan, said that rescuers carefully removed debris, trying to reach children and staff feared trapped beneath the collapsed roof. Outside the school and at the state-run Lady Reading Hospital, anguished parents sought information about their children, unsure whether they had survived.

Officials offer condolences and promise investigations

Peshawar police chief Saeed Ahmed said that the school’s owner had been arrested. He said that the building was structurally weak. However, following his arrest, the owner, Mohammad Khan, blamed recent rains for weakening one of the roofs, according to police, who said the investigation was still underway.

The provincial government said a committee had been formed to investigate the cause of the roof collapse of the three-storey building.

The provincial government spokeswoman, Samar Haroon Bilour, praised rescue workers for their swift response. She said that the government was using all available resources to bring those trapped beneath the rubble to safety.

In Islamabad, President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed sorrow over the deaths and offered condolences to the bereaved families in separate statements.

“The entire nation shares the grief of the affected families in this hour of sorrow,” Zardari said.

He also called for a comprehensive investigation into the collapse and stressed the need to ensure school buildings meet safety standards to prevent similar tragedies.

AP

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