Officials in Peshawar, Pakistan, confirmed on Thursday that at least 27 pupils under the age of 13 died when an elementary school roof collapsed in the Afridi Abad area of the city.
One teacher has also died, they said. The deceased, along with more than 40 other injured people, were brought to Lady Reading Hospital as rescue workers rushed to clear the rubble and search for more survivors.
“We have taken out at least 45 children,” said district emergency officer Iftikhar Khan, but added that more children were thought to still be under the rubble.
From her hospital bed, a teacher told reporters that the school had three floors and more than 1,200 pupils and staff.
The cause of the disaster was not immediately clear.
Roof collapses becoming more regular
Local media in Pakistan noted that such incidents are becoming increasingly routine across the country, due to poor building standards and maintenance.
In July, three young girls were killed near Umerkot when the outer wall of a government school gave way. That same month, one child died and five were injured in Lahore when the roof of an under-construction private school collapsed.
One month earlier, 14 children were killed in a similar manner at a private tutoring facility in Lahore, which came shortly after yet another such incident in Dera Ghazi Khan.
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Edited by: Natalie Muller
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