Peshawar school roof collapse kills 32 students, teacher

A catastrophic school roof collapse in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar killed 32 pupils and a female teacher on Thursday, a hospital official said. 

At least 20 other students were rushed to the hospital following the incident, which authorities attributed to "weak infrastructure". Residents in the densely populated neighborhood described narrow escapes as the building gave way.

Local resident Sohail told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that "everyone began screaming in panic" after his niece managed to escape the building and ran home to inform the family.

"When I arrived at the scene, I saw around 10 to 15 children trapped beneath the rubble, with debris piled up to their necks. We quickly pulled them out," he recounted.

Asim Khan, spokesperson for Peshawar's Lady Reading Hospital, confirmed that the death toll rose to 33 by Thursday evening, with most of the deceased victims aged between four and 14 years. 

"A total of 20 injured children were brought to the hospital, most of whom have been discharged. Three severely injured children, who sustained head injuries, remain admitted," Khan stated, adding that the casualties included 12 girls and a female teacher.

A spokesman for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa emergency rescue service, Bilal Ahmad Faizi, noted that schoolchildren were crushed as one roof collapsed onto another, trapping pupils inside the classroom below. Dozens of volunteers and emergency workers rushed to the site to clear debris and pull trapped children from the rubble. 

A senior Peshawar-based official, speaking on condition of anonymity, stated that initial findings pointed to substandard construction. "The school owner has been detained," the official confirmed.

-SA