Pakistan orders school inspections after collapse
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PESHAWAR, Pakistan -- Pakistani authorities ordered inspections of all private schools in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after a school roof collapsed and killed 34 children and a teacher, as some victims' relatives said the structure previously was reported to be weak.
The provincial government announced an investigation into the cause of Thursday's collapse at Al-Khair school as victims' families demanded justice. At least one family member said he had warned the school owner about leaks.
Police on Thursday arrested the school's owner, Mohammad Khan. Peshawar Police Chief Saeed Ahmed said the building was structurally weak and Khan told officers that recent rains had weakened one of the roofs.
Authorities have locked the school building, where investigators were expected to arrive later Friday as part of the probe. Men and children gathered in the narrow street outside, where Muhammad Murtaza, a young boy dressed in brown and wearing a white bandage around his head, stood near a closed gate.
Other children from the neighborhood gathered around him, asking how he had survived. Murtaza said he was lucky to have survived after the roof of his classroom collapsed. "I will not go back to this school, as this is not a good one," he said.
The government order, which was seen by The Associated Press, directs Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's education department to establish district committees to inspect private school buildings throughout the province and submit findings and recommendations within three days.
The inspections must cover premises that are owned as well as those that are rented. Specific areas to check in the buildings include roofs, ceilings, walls, columns, beams, foundations and staircases. Districts must require urgent technical assessment and classify school buildings as safe, in need of repairs or improvements, or potentially unsafe, the order says.
On Friday, government spokesperson Samar Haroon Bilour expressed grief over the deaths and injuries of children. In a video message, she appealed to parents to provide information about schools housed in structurally weak buildings, saying the government also was conducting inspections to help prevent similar tragedies in the future.
Emergency crews arrived within five minutes of being alerted and everyone trapped beneath the rubble was recovered by the time the operation ended Thursday.
Rescuers pulled at least 40 children alive from the debris, said Bilal Faizi, a spokesperson for emergency services in Peshawar.