Peshawar school roof collapse leaves at least 27 children and teacher dead

A school roof collapse in the north-western Pakistani city of Peshawar has left at least 27 students and one teacher dead, local officials reported on Thursday, with authorities warning that the casualty count could climb further as emergency operations continue.

The disaster struck during lessons at the privately operated Al Khair Education Centre. An upper-floor roof gave way and crashed onto the classrooms underneath, triggering a two-storey cave-in during the middle of the school day.

Roughly 110 children were present when the structure gave way, according to police, with the majority of the students under 13 years old. Emergency personnel and military troops rushed to the site to dig through concrete and debris in an effort to reach those pinned beneath the wreckage.

District emergency officer Iftikhar Khan confirmed that at least 45 children had been pulled from the rubble, though additional pupils were still thought to be trapped underneath. Government official Bilal Faizi stated that rescue teams remained focused on retrieving victims and rushing the wounded to nearby medical centres.

Injured survivors and the bodies of the deceased were transported to Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar. Hospital spokesperson Mohammad Asim confirmed that at least 20 injured individuals had been brought to the facility, alongside most of those who lost their lives.

Peshawar police chief Mian Saeed said that only 47 of the roughly 110 children in the affected classrooms had been successfully brought out. Saeed noted that the property suffered from structural weaknesses and stated that heavy loads from ongoing work on the roof appeared to have caused the collapse.

Provincial authorities have launched a formal inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the disaster.