School roof collapse in Peshawar kills at least 31, mostly children aged 6 to 14

A roof collapse at a private school in Peshawar, northwestern Pakistan, killed at least 31 people on Thursday morning — the vast majority of them children — and injured around 50 more, some critically, as rescue teams picked through rubble for survivors in one of the city's most densely populated neighborhoods.

The collapse struck Al Khair Public School when 110 students were inside, according to Peshawar Police Chief Mian Saeed. Heavy overnight rainfall had made the roof of the two-story building unstable before it gave way, Bilal Ahmed of local rescue services told CNN. Authorities also noted that the building had been put up with inferior materials and was bearing more weight than it should have.

All of the children who died were between 6 and 14 years old, according to Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar, where victims were taken. A 25-year-old woman — identified by CNN as a teacher — is also listed among the fatalities. Some of the injured remain in critical condition, hospital spokesperson Mohammad Asim said.

Local residents were among the first to reach the scene, followed by rescue workers who arrived within minutes of being notified, eyewitnesses said. Rescue efforts stretched into Thursday afternoon before emergency services said everyone trapped beneath the rubble had been pulled out.

The school's owner was arrested and an investigation launched, police official Muhammad Ali told CNN. Authorities are examining the cause of the collapse, with police pointing to substandard construction and excess load on the structure.

In this hour of sorrow, the entire nation shares equally in the grief of the affected families.— Office of President Asif Ali Zardari

No parent should have to endure such pain. I have directed that the injured receive the best possible care.— Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif

President Asif Ali Zardari called the incident a 'heart-wrenching tragedy' and demanded a comprehensive investigation. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif pledged that 'every necessary step' would be taken to ensure the safety of schoolchildren.

CNN reports that building collapses occur repeatedly across Pakistan, a country where enforcement of construction standards is frequently lax and substandard materials are widely used. The school disaster follows by only a few weeks a fire at an Islamabad hospital that claimed the lives of at least 14 newborns; investigators determined that the nursery lacked both a fire alarm and a sprinkler system. The previous July, at least 14 schoolchildren died when the roof of a tutoring center under construction in Lahore gave way.

Why it matters — The deaths of at least 31 people — nearly all of them young children — at a school built with substandard materials underscores the human cost of Pakistan's chronically unenforced construction standards, a problem that has now claimed dozens of lives in multiple incidents within months.

Sources differ on Total death toll: 31 (revised figure) (abcnews.com) vs 33 (children) plus a teacher — approximately 33–34 total (cnn.com)

Reported by abcnews.com, nytimes.com, cnn.com, dawn.com