At least 17 students killed in Pakistan school roof collapse — Dawn

In Peshawar, Pakistan, at least 17 students were killed after the roof of a private school in Dir Colony collapsed. According to Dawn, all children involved in the incident were no older than 13.

Rescue operation

Muhammad Asim, a spokesperson for Lady Reading Hospital, said that 17 students had been killed in the collapse. He also reported that an emergency had been declared at the medical facility.

Earlier, Bilal Ahmed Faizi, a spokesperson for the Rescue 1122 service, said that about 20 people, including students and teachers, had been taken to hospitals. At that time, Lady Reading Hospital reported that four deaths were known.

Rescue work at the collapse site was ongoing. Rescue 1122 also said that more than 10 children had been given first aid and taken to hospitals. Rescuers feared that several more children could remain trapped under the rubble.

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Other collapses in Pakistan

Dawn notes that roof and building collapses occur frequently in Pakistan; the publication links this mainly to low safety standards and the use of poor-quality construction materials.

In July, three girls aged between three and 13 died after part of an exterior wall of a public primary school near Umerkot collapsed. In the same month, a child was killed and at least five other people were injured when the roof of an unfinished private school collapsed in Lahore.

In June, 14 children were killed when the roof of a private educational center collapsed in Lahore's Kahna area. Earlier, four children were killed and another 20 people were injured in the collapse of the roof of a classroom at a private school in Dera Ghazi Khan.