Caving in: Roof of well collapses, killing five girls

PESHAWAR:

Five seminary students were killed while 10 others were injured on Tuesday when the roof of a well they were sitting on collapsed.

According to rescue officials, 50-60 girls were attending a class at the house of Didar Baba, a local cleric, in Pishtakhara area of the provincial capital.

The officials added some students were seated atop a well whose opening had been covered by bricks and concrete. Sometime during the lesson, the roof of the well collapsed, taking the unsuspecting students with it.

Locals called for help; rescue officials then arrived and pulled the students out of the well. However, five of them had died. Ten girls were injured and rushed to Khyber Teaching Hospital. The girls who died were aged between eight and 13.

DC Riaz Mehsood visited the house and ordered that a case be registered against the cleric and other seminary staffers for being negligent.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 4^th, 2015.