At least 35 people, including 34 children and a teacher, were killed when the roof of a school in Pakistan suddenly collapsed during morning classes Thursday, October 15, trapping students beneath piles of concrete and debris.
The devastating tragedy unfolded at the Al-Khair Education Center, a private school in Peshawar, where young children were attending lessons when part of the building gave way without warning.
More than 50 people were injured, some critically, as frantic parents rushed to the scene and emergency crews worked to pull students from the wreckage.
Now, authorities have arrested the school’s owner amid allegations that the building was poorly constructed and may have been carrying more weight than its structure could safely support.
The collapse happened Thursday morning in Dir Colony, a densely populated neighborhood in Peshawar, the capital of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
According to emergency officials, a roof on an upper floor collapsed onto classrooms below, causing sections of the multistory building to give way.
The disaster occurred while children were attending classes, leaving students and teachers trapped beneath the rubble.
Peshawar Police Chief Mian Saeed said approximately 110 students were at the school when the structure collapsed.
Most of the victims were young children, with hospital officials reporting that those killed or injured were primarily between 6 and 14 years old.
As word of the disaster spread, terrified parents and local residents raced to the school.
Some began searching through the debris before professional rescue teams could reach the building.
Emergency workers arrived within minutes, but the location created serious challenges. Narrow streets surrounding the school made it difficult for rescue vehicles and equipment to reach the wreckage.
Nearly 100 rescue personnel eventually joined the operation, working alongside local volunteers to locate trapped students and remove collapsed building materials.
Television footage showed rescuers carrying injured children to waiting ambulances while distraught relatives gathered nearby, desperately seeking information about their loved ones.
Survivors were transported to Lady Reading Hospital, where officials declared an emergency to accommodate the large number of casualties.
Doctors and nurses worked to treat children suffering from injuries ranging from minor wounds to severe trauma.
Some remained in critical condition, raising concerns about the possibility of additional deaths.
As the rescue operation continued, authorities repeatedly revised the casualty figures.
Early reports indicated that fewer than 20 people had died, but the number increased as emergency crews recovered victims and hospitals received more patients.
By later Thursday, the Associated Press reported that at least 34 children and one teacher had died, with more than 50 others injured.
Emergency services spokesperson Bilal Faizi said rescue workers had successfully recovered everyone believed to be trapped beneath the debris after hours of searching.
He credited the rapid response with helping save approximately 40 lives.
As families began mourning, investigators turned their attention to the condition of the school building.
Police said preliminary evidence suggested the structure was weak and that additional weight on the upper floors may have contributed to the collapse.
Authorities are examining reports that construction work was taking place on the roof before the disaster.
The school’s owner, identified by local reports as Mohammad Khan, was arrested as police began investigating possible negligence and building safety violations.
According to investigators, Khan suggested that recent rainfall had weakened part of the structure.
However, authorities have not established a final cause, and the owner’s responsibility for the collapse has not been determined in court.
Officials have formed an investigative committee to examine the building’s construction, safety standards and the circumstances leading to the disaster.
The tragedy has sparked anger and grief throughout Pakistan, where concerns about unsafe school buildings and inadequate construction oversight have persisted for years.
Low-cost private schools serve many families who cannot afford more expensive institutions, but some operate in converted buildings that may not have been designed to accommodate large numbers of students.
Experts have long warned that poorly constructed buildings, unapproved additions and excessive structural loads can create serious safety hazards.
Whether any of those factors directly caused the Al-Khair collapse remains under investigation.
Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed condolences to the victims’ families and called for a thorough examination of the disaster.
Government officials also pledged support for injured students and families mourning the dead.
The catastrophe has renewed questions about whether stronger inspections and enforcement of building regulations could prevent similar incidents.
For the families affected, however, those questions come amid unimaginable heartbreak.
Parents who sent their children to school Thursday morning expecting an ordinary day of lessons instead found themselves waiting outside hospitals and searching for news of their loved ones.
Many of the victims had barely begun their education.
As investigators examine the wreckage and question those responsible for the property, the community is left mourning dozens of young lives lost in a place that should have been safe.
And while the final findings may take time, the disaster has already become a devastating reminder of the consequences when a school building fails with children inside.
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