In brief
A temporary school building in Peshawar’s Dir Colony collapsed at 8:48 GMT, tearing up to three floors and crushing 33 pupils plus one teacher. The overcrowded, single‑lane street made it difficult for emergency crews to reach the site and evacuate the injured. Authorities say the roof’s sub‑standard construction and overload were to blame, and the school owner has been arrested. The governor has ordered a safety audit of all schools in the province amid other recent school‑related disasters.
What happened? At 8:48 GMT in the crowded Dir Colony of Peshawar, the roof of Al‑Khair private school collapsed, crushing up to three floors and sealing students inside.
An emergency call triggered paramedics and police, but the narrow street allowed only one vehicle at a time, delaying rescue efforts.
Casualties. Hospitals reported 32 children and a teacher dead, with at least one more child fatally injured. Many more sustained injuries, some in critical condition, and several children were feared trapped beneath rubble.
Rescue crews, aided by volunteers, extracted more than twenty children, but later many were declared deceased.
A police chief described the building as a “gross negligence” case of sub‑standard, overloaded roofing that exceeded its limits.
The owner of Al‑Khair school has been arrested, and provincial authorities are conducting a safety audit of all schools to prevent future disasters.
This tragedy comes a few months after a tuition centre near Lahore lost fourteen students to a roof collapse and after a neonatal ward in Islamabad, where 14 babies died, was found to lack fire alarms and sprinklers.
The incident has spread a wave of concern across the province, urging stricter enforcement of building codes and better emergency preparedness for schools.
