Pakistani authorities ordered inspections of all private schools in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after a school roof collapsed and killed 34 children and a teacher, as some victims’ relatives said the structure previously was reported to be weak.
asserted
structure → order → children
The provincial government announced an investigation into the cause of Thursday’s collapse at Al-Khair school as victims’ families demanded justice.
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families → announce → justice
At least one family member said he had warned the school owner about leaks.
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he → say → leaks
Police on Thursday arrested the school’s owner, Mohammad Khan.
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Police → arrest → owner
Peshawar Police Chief Saeed Ahmed said the building was structurally weak and Khan told officers that recent rains had weakened one of the roofs.
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rains → say → roofs
The government order, which was seen by The Associated Press, directs Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s education department to establish district committees to inspect private school buildings throughout the province and submit findings and recommendations within three days.
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which → see → days
The inspections must cover premises that are owned as well as those that are rented.
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that → cover → premises
Specific areas to checks in the buildings include roofs, ceilings, walls, columns, beams, foundations and staircases.
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areas → include → roofs
Districts must require urgent technical assessment and classify school buildings as safe, in need of repairs or improvements, or potentially unsafe, the order says.
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order → require → repairs
On Friday, government spokesperson Samar Haroon Bilour expressed grief over the deaths and injuries of children.
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Bilour → express → children
In a video message, she appealed to parents to provide information about schools housed in structurally weak buildings, saying the government also was conducting inspections to help prevent similar tragedies in the future.
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government → appeal → future
Survivor and families describe collapse and aftermath
Emergency crews arrived within five minutes of being alerted and everyone trapped beneath the rubble was recovered by the time the operation ended Thursday.
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operation → describe → time
Rescuers pulled at least 40 children alive from the debris, said Bilal Faizi, a spokesperson for emergency services in Peshawar.
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Faizi → pull → Peshawar
The collapsed roof was a traditional structure made of mud and bricks and some of the children trapped beneath died of suffocation, Faizi said.
Speaking from a hospital bed, injured teacher Mahwish Zaman said the collapse happened so suddenly that no one had time to escape.
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one → collapse → time
Zaman described being in her classroom when she heard a loud crash from the floor above.
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she → describe → floor
Before she could warn her students to run to safety, the ceiling fell in.
uncertain
ceiling → warn → safety
She was unconscious when she was taken to the hospital and later learned many of her students had died.
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many → take → students
Residents visited victims’ families, many of whom lived in Peshawar’s Dir Colony neighborhood, where the school is located.
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school → visit → neighborhood
Mohammad Zaman, whose two nephews died in the collapse, said he and other relatives had complained to the school’s owner about rainwater repeatedly seeping into classrooms.
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rainwater → die → classrooms
Zaman said he warned that the building’s condition could lead to a tragedy.
uncertain
condition → say → tragedy
Zaman, 36, said through tears that his nephew Abdul, 9, was in second grade, while Abuzar, 10, was in third grade.
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Abuzar → say → grade
Abuzar’s sister, Samiya, a nursery student at the school, survived because she had gone outside to buy sweets.
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she → survive → sweets
Zakir Ullah lost both sons, Abu Bakr and Mohammad, who were in the same classroom.
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who → lose → classroom
His daughter was in a different class and ran home after the collapse to tell the family the school had fallen.
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school → run → family
They rushed back with her and found the boys’ classroom buried under rubble, he said.
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he → rush → rubble
Nothing was visible beneath the debris, said Ullah, who described the building as weak and demanded punishment for any officials who authorized its use as a school.
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who → say → school
“How could I have known this would take both my sons away from me,” he said.
uncertain
he → know → me
___
Ahmed reported from Islamabad.
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Ahmed → report → Islamabad
The Aporia
