What happened
On Thursday, 15 October, the roof of a private school in Peshawar, in northwest Pakistan, gave way during lessons and fell onto the classrooms below. Police said the roof came down on three classrooms, one on each of the building's three floors, where about 110 pupils were present. Local reports place the Al-Khair Educational Centre in Dir Colony, a densely populated neighbourhood in the city. One account says the roof first hit the second floor, and that floor then gave way onto the levels beneath it.
Residents reached the building first, and rescue teams arrived minutes after being alerted, according to witnesses. Rescue spokesman Bilal Ahmad Faizi said teams found one roof had fallen onto another, crushing the classroom below and trapping children inside.
Death toll and injuries
The figures have risen and differ by source. The first hospital count, from the Lady Reading Hospital and the Naseerullah Babar Memorial Hospital, listed 30 dead (28 and two) and 51 injured. AFP, citing Asim Khan of Lady Reading Hospital, later put the toll at 32 children and a teacher, a woman, with most of the children aged 4 to 14. Twelve of the dead were girls. About 20 injured children were taken to hospital, most of whom have since left, while three with serious head injuries were admitted.
Higher totals have appeared in other reports, including 34 dead with 32 of them children, and 34 pupils plus a teacher. Some reports say around 50 children were injured.
- Roof gives way onto classrooms during lessons at the school in Dir Colony, Peshawar
- Hospitals report 30 dead (28 and two) and 51 injured
- Toll reported at 32 children and a teacher, with about 20 injured children taken to hospital
Rescue and the investigation
A relative of an injured child said he saw 10 to 15 children buried up to the neck under debris, and that they were pulled out quickly. Authorities warned that more children could still be under the rubble, and rescue work was still under way when the reports were filed.
The owner of the school has been detained, and police opened an investigation. A resident, Sher Ahmed, blamed inferior construction materials and called for an inquiry. Police said they want to establish whether the building broke construction rules.
Cause and government response
Police chief Mian Saeed said the building's weak structure could not carry the load of additional construction work, and that the concrete structural elements of the roof were of too low quality and overloaded. Police commissioner Farhan Ahmed told the BBC that the whole building was in extremely poor technical condition and that children should not have been inside. Investigators will check whether the building had passed inspections in the past. Reports said heavy rain had fallen overnight and may have damaged the roof.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif offered condolences, ordered that families receive the help they need, and called for a thorough and transparent investigation, saying there could be no compromise on children's safety in schools. Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Daw stressed the deep impact on the nation. President Asif Ali Zardari expressed shock and deep pain, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor Faisal Karim Kundi asked for a detailed report.
Roof and building collapses are frequent in Pakistan, and weak safety standards and poor materials are often blamed. ANSA recalled a collapse at a private tuition centre in Lahore on 30 June that killed 14 children.