A school roof collapse incident in the provincial capital’s Afridi Abad locality claimed the lives of 29 people on Thursday.
asserted
incident → claim → Thursday
Lady Reading Hospital (LRH) spokesperson Muhammad Asim confirmed to Dawn that the death toll at the hospital had reached 28, while one death was reported from Peshawar’s Naseerullah Khan Babar Memorial Hospital, the hospital’s Medical Superintendent Dr Abid Hussain, told Dawn.
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death → confirm → Dawn
The deceased included 28 students — between the ages of seven and 16 — and a female teacher, while 19 others were injured.
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others → include → seven
Speaking to Geo News, Peshawar Deputy Commissioner Afaq Wazir confirmed that the rescue operation had concluded.
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operation → speak → News
“Rescue teams have cleared all the debris, and no more injured children are at the scene,” he said.
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he → clear → scene
Following the incident, an emergency was declared at the hospital, added the LRH spokesperson.
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spokesperson → follow → hospital
Peshawar DC earlier told Dawn that the roof of Al-Khair School had collapsed, trapping students beneath the debris.
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roof → tell → debris
According to a statement issued by his office, students were present in their classrooms when the incident occurred.
uncertain
incident → accord → classrooms
A rescue official told AFP that the ceiling came down on the students after the roof of a higher floor collapsed, crumpling the two storeys.
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roof → tell → storeys
Peshawar Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Dr Mian Saeed Ahmed said the building’s structure was weak.
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structure → say → ?
“Its roof was overweight with construction on a weak structure that caused the collapse,” AFP quoted him as saying.
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AFP → cause → him
Meanwhile, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi expressed grief over the deaths in the school roof collapse and sought a detailed report on the incident.
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Kundi → express → incident
He also directed the authorities to determine the cause of the collapse.
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He → direct → collapse
“The loss of precious lives of innocent children is an extremely painful tragedy,” he said, according to a statement, extending his heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families.
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he → say → families
He prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured children and directed the authorities concerned to provide them with the best possible medical facilities.
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He → pray → facilities
In another statement on his X account, the KP governor added that he had also directed a structural safety audit of educational institutions across the province to “identify potential risks and ensure that immediate corrective measures are taken wherever necessary”.
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measures → add → risks
“We cannot allow the safety of our children to be compromised,” Kundi wrote.
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Kundi → allow → children
Separately, KP Inspector General (IG) Zulfiqar Hameed ordered Peshawar CCPO to oversee the rescue operation and directed the traffic police to establish a “green corridor” to ensure uninterrupted movement of ambulances.
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Hameed → order → ambulances
Rescue and police teams were directed to utilise all available resources, a statement said.
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statement → direct → resources
“In this hour of grief, KP police stands with the affected families,” the IGP was quoted as saying.
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IGP → stand → families
Speaking to Dawn, Samiullah, a parent who rushed to the site after hearing about the incident, said he had rescued three girls, all under the age of eight.
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all → speak → eight
“I received a call from home at around 8:50am and reached the site about 10 minutes later, at around 9am.
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I → receive → am
We have six children studying at the school,” he said.
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he → have → school
“When I saw the building, I thought my son, who was in a ground-floor classroom beneath the collapsed first floor, had also died.
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who → see → floor
However, he had left the classroom to drink water,” he added.
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he → leave → water
PM Shehbaz takes ‘serious notice’
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Shehbaz → take → notice
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has taken “serious notice” of the incident, as he offered his condolences to the bereaved families in a post on X.
“Our children are our most precious asset, and every such loss is a tragedy for the entire country,” DPM Dar said.
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Dar → say → country
He added that “ensuring the safety and protection of our children must remain paramount”.
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ensuring → add → children
“All necessary measures must be taken to provide immediate assistance to those affected, ensure the best possible medical care for the injured, and strengthen safety standards in our schools to prevent such tragedies from recurring.”
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measures → take → tragedies
President Asif Ali Zardari also expressed “profound shock and grief” over the tragic school incident in a statement on X.
“This heart-wrenching tragedy has plunged the entire nation into shock,” he said, extending his condolences to the families of the children killed.
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he → express → children
He directed relevant authorities to provide top-notch medical facilities to the injured and extend assistance to the affected families.
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He → direct → families
“In this hour of sorrow, the entire nation shares equally in the grief of the affected families,” he said.
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he → share → families
President Zardari emphasised the need for a comprehensive investigation to determine the cause of the incident and to ensure that all educational institutions’ buildings were following safety standards.
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buildings → emphasise → standards
PM Shehbaz expressed “deep grief and sorrow” over the incident, in a statement shared by his office.
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Shehbaz → express → office
He extended his condolences to the bereaved families and prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured, directing that “all possible medical assistance” be provided.
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assistance → extend → injured
PM Shehbaz has also issued instructions to expedite relief operations, the statement said.
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statement → issue → operations
Roof collapse incidents
Building and roof collapses are common in Pakistan, often attributed to poor safety standards and the use of substandard construction materials.
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collapses → attribute → materials
In July, three girls, aged 3 to 13, were killed after a portion of the outer wall of a government primary school near Umerkot collapsed and the rubble fell on them.
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rubble → kill → them
The same month, a child died, and at least five other people were injured after the roof of an under-construction private school building collapsed in Lahore’s Baghbanpura neighbourhood.
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roof → die → neighbourhood
On June 30, 14 children lost their lives when the roof of a private tuition centre collapsed in Lahore’s Kahna area.
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roof → lose → area
…and 6 more, not listed.
The Aporia
