PESHAWAR, Pakistan — A roof collapse at a private school in Peshawar killed 32 children and a teacher on Thursday, intensifying concerns over building safety and regulatory oversight in the region. The incident at Al-Khair Education System, a three-story school in the Dir Colony neighborhood, also left dozens injured and has prompted calls for a thorough investigation.
The collapse occurred in the morning as students were attending classes on different floors. According to Fazal Wahab, a rescue worker at the scene, sections of the roof suddenly gave way, sending debris crashing into the classrooms below. Among those nearly caught in the disaster was 11-year-old Samra Bibi, who had left her classroom to fetch a pencil from the canteen moments earlier.
Samra’s father, Muhammad Zameen, described his daughter’s distress following the incident. “All night she was hugging either her mother or me,” he said, adding that she was traumatized by the loss of her teacher in the collapse. Other families were also mourning, including Ismail Khan, who lost his 6-year-old daughter. After her funeral on Friday, community members gathered at his home to offer prayers.
The incident exposed the risks faced by many private schools in Pakistan, which have expanded rapidly as a more affordable alternative amid the country’s struggling public education system. However, inconsistent regulation has raised safety concerns, particularly in older or hastily constructed buildings.
Al-Khair Education System was registered as a school only in March this year, according to local police official Asif Sharif. The circumstances of the building’s construction and the adequacy of its safety inspections are now central to the ongoing probe by provincial authorities. Deputy Commissioner Afaq Wazir confirmed that officials are examining whether the structure complied with safety standards.
Local police have opened an investigation under the charge of “death caused unintentionally” and have arrested the school’s principal. Zameen said the principal had disregarded repeated parental warnings about the building’s condition. “My wife is illiterate but even she said it three times that the building does not seem safe,” he said.
The tragedy also comes at a politically sensitive time for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, placed under federal control last week amid tension between the central government and the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, which previously governed the province. Faisal Karim Kundi, the province’s governor who has since assumed greater administrative authority, visited the site on Friday. He pledged accountability and called for safety inspections in schools across the region.
Provincial officials have ordered comprehensive evaluations of public and private educational buildings, with reports on their conditions due by October 26. Deputy Commissioner Wazir and education department representatives are leading efforts to survey older structures for safety risks. Samar Haroon Bilour, a spokeswoman for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government, urged the public to assist in identifying unsafe school buildings.
The disaster has reopened painful memories for many in Peshawar, recalling the 2014 Taliban attack on the Army Public School that killed more than 140 people, most of them children. “This tragedy is no less,” Wahab said, reflecting the community’s deep sense of loss and vulnerability.