At least 28 people, including 27 children and a female teacher, were killed after the roof of a private school collapsed in north-western Pakistan on Thursday.
More than 36 others were injured, with several reportedly in critical condition, as rescue teams continued searching for victims trapped beneath the rubble in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Emergency services spokesperson Bilal Faizi said several children remained trapped under the debris, while hospital spokesperson Mohammad Asim confirmed the death toll.
All the children killed or injured were aged 13 and below, Asim said.
The hospital declared an emergency to treat the injured as rescuers worked to clear the rubble and reach those still trapped.
Outside the school and the government-run Lady Reading Hospital, anxious parents desperately sought information about their children, uncertain whether they had survived the collapse.
The cause of the incident remains under investigation.
Peshawar police chief Saeed Ahmed said the school owner had been detained, adding that the building’s structure was weak.
In July, four schoolchildren were killed when the roof of a tuition centre under construction collapsed in Lahore.
