At least 34 children killed in Pakistan school collapse

At least 34 children and a teacher have died after the roof of a private school collapsed in Pakistan.

The disaster unfolded at the Al Khair Education Center in Peshawar during morning classes, in the country's deadliest incident of its kind.

Some of the children killed or injured were as young as six, according to Mohammad Asim, spokesman for the Lady Reading Hospital.

He also said more than 50 people were wounded, including three children who are in a critical condition with head injuries.

"The fatalities include 12 girl students and a female teacher," he said.

The hospital declared an emergency as medical staff treated the wounded.

Everyone trapped beneath the rubble has now been pulled out.

The incident took place at 8.48am local ​time and the operation lasted over four hours, according to Rescue Department spokesman Arif Khattak.

Nearly 100 rescuers eventually joined the effort, an emergency services spokesperson said.

A rescue official said the tragedy occurred after a higher-floor roof collapsed onto students in classrooms below, crumpling two storeys of the building.

Peshawar police chief Saeed Ahmed said the school's owner, Mohammad Khan, had been arrested and noted that the building was structurally weak. An investigation is under way.

"Its roof was overloaded with construction on a weak structure, which caused the collapse," he said.

The owner himself blamed recent rains for weakening one of the roofs, police said.

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Mahwish Zaman, an injured teacher speaking from a hospital bed, said that the three-storey school had an estimated 1,200 students enrolled.

She said she was in her classroom when the roof collapsed and felt as if the sky had fallen. She regained consciousness in hospital.

Samiullah Khan, who rushed to the school after learning of the collapse, said his son survived because he had stepped out of his classroom to drink water.

Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari expressed "deep grief and sorrow" over the "tragic school accident", saying it had "shocked the entire nation".

In a statement on X, he extended his "heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased and bereaved families".

He also called for a comprehensive investigation and stressed the need to ensure school buildings meet safety standards to prevent similar tragedies.

The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, of which Peshawar is the capital, said a committee had been formed to investigate the cause of the collapse.

There was no immediate comment from school officials.

(c) Sky News 2026: At least 34 children killed in Pakistan school collapse