FOURTEEN CHILDREN KILLED IN LAHORE TUTORING CENTRE ROOF COLLAPSE

Fourteen children died when the roof of a tutoring centre collapsed in Lahore, Pakistan on Tuesday, according to rescue officials. The children, aged five to sixteen with most under nine years old, were found under rubble alongside a 30-year-old female teacher. Rescuers discovered the victims at the private after-school facility using spades and their hands to excavate the partially collapsed building. Workers had been repairing roof tiles when the structure gave way, a witness told the AFP news agency.

Punjab's information minister Azma Bokhari stated in preliminary reports that the tutoring centre was unregistered and operated inside a privately owned residential building with a dilapidated roof. The uncle of one victim told AFP that repair work was underway on tiles whilst children studied inside. Such tutoring centres are common across Pakistan, where children attend extra lessons outside regular school hours. Bokhari said that if negligence, carelessness or any violation of the law was established, those responsible would face strict legal action.

Provincial police said two people had been taken into custody over the disaster and were collecting evidence at the scene. Lahore's commissioner Marryam Khan stated that those responsible would be found through a transparent, unbiased and immediate investigation. Prime minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed grief and directed authorities to provide injured persons with every possible medical assistance, according to a statement from his office. Building and roof collapses occur regularly across Pakistan, chiefly because of poor safety standards and unsafe construction materials, according to reported analysis.