Pakistan School Roof Collapse Kills 29 as Questions Mount Over Building Safety

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — A school day ended in tragedy in north-western Pakistan on Thursday after a roof collapsed at a private school in Peshawar, killing at least 28 children and one teacher and injuring more than 50 others.

The disaster struck Al-Khair school in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, while classes were under way. Most of the children killed or injured were aged 13 or younger, according to Lady Reading Hospital spokesperson Mohammad Asim.

The hospital declared an emergency as medical teams treated the injured, some of whom were reported to be in critical condition.

Rescue workers and local residents rushed to the scene to pull children from the wreckage. Parents gathered at the school and hospital, desperately seeking news of their sons and daughters.

TPakistan School Roof Collapse Kills 29 as Questions Mount Over Building Safety

he Associated Press reported that rescue officials later said everyone trapped beneath the debris had been brought out, although crews continued clearing the rubble.

Police point to weak building structure

The collapse has raised urgent questions about the condition of the school building and whether adequate safety measures were in place.

Peshawar police chief Mian Saeed said the structure was weak. He also indicated that additional construction on the roof may have contributed to the collapse.

Authorities have ordered an investigation to establish what caused the disaster and determine whether any safety requirements were breached.

Police also arrested the school's owner, according to the Associated Press. However, the precise cause of the collapse and any individual responsibility will need to be established through the investigation.

There was no immediate comment from school officials in the Reuters report.

The findings will be important for determining whether the tragedy resulted from structural weaknesses, unsafe alterations or other factors. No final conclusion on the cause had been established in the reports available.

Parents search for answers as rescuers work

The scale of the disaster left families waiting anxiously for information about their children.

Witnesses told the Associated Press that residents were among the first to reach the school in the densely populated neighbourhood. Emergency crews arrived shortly afterwards and began searching through the debris.

Resident Samiullah Khan said he helped rescue three girls after rushing to the school. His own son survived because he had left his classroom to get a drink of water.

The account offered a glimpse of how narrowly some children escaped as rescuers worked to reach those still beneath the wreckage.

Mahwish Zaman, a teacher injured in the collapse, told the Associated Press that she had been in her classroom when the roof gave way. She later regained consciousness in hospital.

The incident also placed pressure on local medical services as hospitals received injured pupils and staff.

Pakistan's leaders demand investigation

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed condolences to the families who lost loved ones.

Zardari called for a thorough investigation and stressed the need to ensure that school buildings meet safety requirements.

The provincial government also ordered an inquiry into the collapse. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi sought a detailed report from the relevant authorities and called for the injured to receive appropriate medical care.

The investigation is expected to establish what happened at the school and whether action is required to prevent similar incidents.

Previous school collapse raises wider safety concerns

The Peshawar disaster comes months after another school-related roof collapse in Lahore, where four children died at a tutoring centre under construction in July, according to the Associated Press.

The two incidents have renewed concerns about the safety of buildings used to educate children in Pakistan.

For families sending children to school, the expectation is that classrooms should provide a safe place to learn. When a building collapses during lessons, questions extend beyond the immediate rescue operation to the inspections, construction decisions and oversight intended to protect pupils.

Authorities have yet to publish the full findings of the Peshawar investigation. Those findings will be crucial in determining the cause of the collapse, establishing accountability where warranted and identifying any wider safety failures.

For the families mourning children and the injured awaiting recovery, the immediate priority remains care and support. The longer-term challenge is ensuring that the investigation leads to meaningful action rather than ending with expressions of grief.

About the Author

Maureen Onyango is a journalist passionate about storytelling, life coaching and spiritual lessons. She studied at the Kenya Institute of Management and enjoys telling stories that inform, inspire and empower communities.