The roof of a private school collapsed in north-western Pakistan on Thursday, killing at least 28 children and a female teacher and injuring more than 50 other people, a hospital spokesman said, as rescuers searched the rubble for anyone still trapped. Six girls were among the dead.
Several children were trapped under the rubble in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, said Bilal Faizi, a spokesman for the emergency services.
A hospital spokesman, Mohammad Asim, also confirmed the casualties, saying some of the injured were in critical condition.
All the children killed or injured were age 13 or younger, he said. The hospital declared an emergency as medical staff treated the wounded.
Hours later, rescue officials said that everyone trapped beneath the rubble had been pulled out and crews were clearing the debris.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi expressed sorrow over the collapse and sought a report from the relevant authorities about the cause of the collapse. He directed officials to provide the best possible medical care to the injured children.
Mahwish Zaman, an injured teacher speaking from a hospital bed, said that the three-storey school had an estimated 1,200 students enrolled in nursery through fifth grade.
She told The Associated Press that she was in her classroom when the roof collapsed and felt as if the sky had fallen. She regained consciousness in the hospital.
According to witnesses, residents were among the first to reach the school in a congested neighbourhood in central Peshawar and rescue workers arrived within minutes of being alerted.
A resident, Samiullah Khan, said that he rushed to the school after learning of the collapse and helped rescue three girls.
Mr Khan said his son, who attends the school, survived because he had stepped out of his classroom to drink water.
A resident, Mohammad Khan, said 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.
The cause of the collapse was under investigation. Peshawar police chief Saeed Ahmed said that the school’s owner had been arrested. He said that the building was structurally weak.
The provincial government said that the school occupied a three-storey building and that a committee had been formed to investigate the cause of the roof collapse.
The provincial government spokeswoman, Samar Haroon Bilour, said that the government directed hospital officials to provide prompt medical care to the injured children and 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,” Mr 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.
In July, a roof collapsed at a tutoring centre under construction in Lahore, killing four schoolchildren.
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.