Second roof collapse in three days kills child in Lahore, five injured

• Eight-year-old dies after under-construction building roof caves in at Baghbanpura

• Four men and a child injured as rubble crashes onto road during expansion work

• Police say school administration was adding two-marla structure to 14-marla building

• LAHORE: An eight-year-old boy was killed and at least five others were injured when the roof of an under-construction building collapsed in Lahore’s Baghbanpura neighbourhood on Thursday, police and rescuers said, in the second fatal roof-collapse incident in the city within three days.

The latest tragedy comes just two days after the roof of a tuition centre collapsed in Lahore’s Kahna area, killing 14 children.

According to Baghbanpura police, the deceased was an eight-year-old boy, while four men and another child sustained injuries and were shifted to hospital for treatment.

Speaking to the media, Baghbanpura Station House Officer (SHO) Rizwan Khan said the school administration was expanding its 14-marla building by constructing an additional two-marla structure.

“During the construction of the aforesaid area, rubble from the roof fell on the road, killing a young boy and injuring a bike rider along with the construction workers,” he said.

Television footage showed several women, reportedly associated with the adjacent school, being escorted away in a police van.

However, the SHO denied that anyone had been taken into custody, saying the teachers were moved from the site to prevent any untoward situation in view of public sentiment.

Earlier, Rescue 1122 said seven emergency vehicles and 25 rescue personnel participated in the operation. The injured were shifted to Services Hospital after receiving first aid at the scene.

The incident follows another deadly roof collapse at a tuition centre in Lahore’s Kahna area two days earlier that claimed the lives of 14 children.

On Wednesday, hundreds of mourners attended funeral prayers at a local mosque before the victims—most of them between four and 12 years of age—were laid to rest.

CM orders safety audit of schools after Baghbanpura roof collapse

Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on Thursday ordered an immediate province-wide safety audit of school buildings in densely populated areas after taking notice of the roof collapse at a summer camp operating in a private school in Baghbanpura, which claimed the life of a child.

She sought a detailed report on the incident from the Lahore Commissioner and the Director General of Rescue 1122.

Expressing profound grief and sorrow over the child's death, the chief minister extended heartfelt condolences and sympathies to the bereaved family.

She praised Rescue 1122 personnel for safely rescuing more than 10 children from the rubble and directed rescue teams to expedite the operation to ensure the safe recovery of any children who might still be trapped beneath the debris.

Maryam Nawaz also directed that the injured children and other affected persons be provided with the best available medical treatment without delay.

She ordered strict legal action against those responsible for negligence or substandard construction and instructed the authorities to immediately carry out a comprehensive safety audit of all school buildings located in densely populated areas across Punjab.

“The rescue operation must continue without interruption. Even a single second of delay will not be tolerated,” the chief minister said.