Funeral prayers were offered in Peshawar for a school teacher and 15 of the children who lost their lives after a school roof collapsed.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) governor, Faisal Karim Kundi, also attended the funeral prayers to pay his respects to the victims.
What happened at Al-Khair School in Peshawar school roof collapse?
At least 35 people, including 34 children and a female teacher, were killed when the roof of a private school collapsed in Peshawar on Thursday, October 15. More than 40 people were injured, according to hospital and police officials.
The incident took place at Al-Khair School in the Afridi Abad area of Peshawar. Students were attending classes when the roof collapsed and trapped them under the rubble.
Most of the children who died were reportedly under the age of 13. Rescue teams rushed to the site and began searching for survivors. Ambulances shifted the injured to nearby hospitals.
According to rescue officials, the roof of an upper floor fell onto the floor below. This caused more of the building to collapse and trapped children inside their classrooms.
Footage from the scene showed rescue workers pulling injured children from the rubble and taking them to hospitals.
An emergency was declared at Lady Reading Hospital (LRH), where medical teams treated the victims.
Hospital officials first reported four deaths. However, the death toll increased as more bodies were brought to the hospital. LRH received dozens of victims, while two bodies were taken to Naseerullah Khan Babar Memorial Hospital.
The hospital administration confirmed that six girls were among the victims. Several injured children received medical treatment. Those with serious head injuries were kept under observation.
Peshawar Deputy Commissioner Afaq Wazir later confirmed that the rescue operation had ended. He said rescue teams had recovered everyone trapped under the rubble and cleared the site.
ESED forms inquiry committee
The KP Elementary and Secondary Education Department (ESED) has formed a three-member inquiry committee to investigate the deaths and injuries caused by a classroom roof collapse.
The committee has been directed to submit its report on October 15, according to an official notification.
The incident occurred at Al-Khair Education System in Dir Colony, where several students and teachers were killed or injured.
The department has launched an investigation to determine the cause of the collapse and identify the factors behind the incident.
