34 children dead as roof of school collapses in Peshawar

PESHAWAR
At least 34 people, including 33 children and a female teacher, were killed and several others injured when the roof of a private school collapsed in Peshawar’s Dir Colony area on Thursday, officials said.
The incident occurred at Al-Khair Private School, a three-storey building located in Dir Colony, spokesman Rescue 1122 Bilal Ahmad Faizi said. “One roof of the school collapsed onto another, causing the entire structure to cave in. The children were buried under the debris, which resulted in heavy casualties,” he added.
The Chief Capital City Police Officer Dr Mian Saeed said that around 110 children were studying in the school at the time of the incident. He said the roofs of the building were in a dilapidated condition and that the rescue operation faced difficulties as the school was situated in narrow streets.
SSP Operations said that the rescue operation had been completed and the owner of the school had been taken into custody, adding that a case would be registered against him. Personnel of the Pakistan Army participated in the rescue operation alongside Rescue 1122 and other relief agencies. Spokesperson for the Lady Reading Hospital (LRH) , Mohammad Asim, said that 32 children were brought dead to the hospital.

Giving details, he said a total of 20 injured children were brought to LRH, most of whom had been discharged after first aid, while three severely injured children with head injuries had been admitted.
He said that among the dead and injured were 12 girls and a female teacher. He said the bodies had been handed over to the heirs, while treatment of the admitted children was underway. In another update, the LRH spokesperson said a total of 51 children were injured after being buried under the debris. All the children were between 7 and 13 years of age, and among the dead were six girls.
Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Faisal Karim Kundi expressed deep grief and sorrow over the death of children in the collapse of the roof of the private school in Dir Colony near Ring Road.
The governor expressed heartfelt condolences and sympathy to the families of the children killed in the accident, saying the loss of precious lives of innocent children was an extremely painful tragedy. He prayed for the early recovery of the injured and directed the authorities concerned to provide the best medical facilities to them.
He also sought a detailed report of the incident to determine the causes of the accident and prayed that Almighty Allah grant a place in His mercy to the martyred children and grant patience to the bereaved families.
Meanwhile, Advisor to the Governor for Health Lt Gen (Retd) Nigar Johar visited the Lady Reading Hospital along with Health Secretary Matiullah.
She expressed deep grief and sorrow over the martyrdom of children in the Iqra School incident and expressed heartfelt condolences to the heirs of the deceased.
She visited the hospital to review the medical facilities being provided to the 23 injured children present at the hospital and directed that the best medical facilities be provided to them.
She said the loss of precious lives of children was an extremely regrettable and heart-wrenching incident.
Advisor to the Governor for Information and Broadcasting Samar Haroon Bilour also spoke to the media at the LRH Hospital regarding the incident.
Chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party Bilawal Bhutto Zardari expressed sorrow over the death of students and teachers due to the collapse of the roof at Iqra Private School.
He said he was deeply shocked by the tragic news of the accident in the provincial capital and that he felt the intensity of the grief of the parents of the students who lost their lives. He directed the administration to further accelerate its relief activities and to immediately retrieve those buried under the debris.