Pakistan tutoring centre roof collapse kills 14 kids

At least 14 students died when the roof of a tutoring center under construction in Pakistan’s eastern city of Lahore collapsed, police and rescue officials said.

Eight other children were also injured and are being treated in hospital, senior police official Faisal Kamran said, adding that the owner of the training center and another person were arrested.

Kamran said that rescue teams continued to search the rubble after reports that more children may be trapped under the rubble.

He said the tutoring center was located in an outdated building and the roof of the unfinished second floor collapsed due to shoddy construction.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari expressed his sadness over the collapse of the roof of an evening school building in Lahore.

In the statement, he expressed his condolences to the families of those who lost their lives, prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured and said that effective security measures should be taken to prevent similar tragedies from occurring.

Building collapses are common in Pakistan, where construction standards are often poorly enforced.

Many structures are built with substandard materials and safety regulations are often ignored to reduce costs.