News
October 16, 2026
Peshawar School Roof Collapse Kills at Least 32 Children and One Teacher
By Sophia Saifi & Billy Stockwell
Lahore: Thirty-two children and a teacher were killed and dozens injured when the roof of a school in northern Pakistan collapsed on Thursday morning, authorities said.
Heavy overnight rainfall caused the roof of a two-story building at Al Khair Public School in the city of Peshawar to become unstable and later collapse, Bilal Ahmed of the local rescue services told CNN.
The deceased children ranged in age from six to 14 years, according to Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar, where the victims were taken. A 25-year-old woman is also listed among the fatalities.
Around 50 children were injured in the collapse, according to hospital figures. Several remain under medical observation. Video from the scene obtained by CNN showed ambulances rushing through narrow streets and crowds gathered outside the school building.
Local residents were among the first people to reach the scene, and rescue workers arrived within minutes, eyewitnesses said.
Rescue efforts stretched into Thursday afternoon but later concluded after everyone trapped beneath the rubble was pulled out, according to emergency services.
Building collapses are a common problem in Pakistan. Construction standards in the country are often poorly enforced, and many structures are built with substandard materials.
Investigation launched
Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari said the incident was a “heart-wrenching tragedy” and called for a comprehensive investigation into the cause of the deadly collapse.
“In this hour of sorrow, the entire nation shares equally in the grief of the affected families,” the president’s office posted on X.
Meanwhile, Shehbaz Sharif, the country’s prime minister, expressed his condolences following the tragic incident, saying “no parent should have to endure such pain.”
“I have directed that the injured receive the best possible care,” Sharif said, while vowing to take “every necessary step” to protect the safety of school children.
The school’s owner has been arrested, and an investigation launched into the incident, a police official in Peshawar, Muhammad Ali, told CNN.
The collapse comes just weeks after a fire tore through a hospital in the capital Islamabad, killing at least 14 newborns and sparking widespread anger and multiple arrests.
In July, a roof collapse at a tutoring center under construction in Pakistan’s eastern city of Lahore killed at least 14 schoolchildren, police and rescue officials said at the time. - CNN
Courtesy CNN
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