At least 14 schoolchildren lost their lives Tuesday when the roof of a tutoring center in Lahore, Pakistan gave way, according to police and rescue officials on the scene.
Eight more children sustained injuries and were taken to a hospital for treatment, senior police official Faisal Kamran confirmed. Kamran also announced that the owner of the tutoring center and one other individual had been taken into custody following the disaster.
According to Kamran, rescue teams were still sifting through the wreckage after reports emerged that additional children may have been trapped under the debris. He noted that the tutoring center was operating inside an older building, and that the roof of an unfinished upper floor gave way due to what appeared to be inferior construction work.
Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari publicly expressed sorrow over the collapse, which occurred at an evening school facility in Lahore. In an official statement, he extended his condolences to the families of those who died, wished a swift recovery for the injured, and called for stronger safety measures to prevent similar disasters from happening in the future.
Deadly building collapses are not uncommon in Pakistan, where enforcement of construction codes is frequently lax. Substandard building materials are widely used, and safety rules are often bypassed in an effort to cut costs.
