An eighth-grade girl lost her life in Sialkot after being buried under debris when the roof shed of classrooms at an under-construction government girls’ high school collapsed.
Reports said construction work on new classrooms was in progress when student Zainab Bibi stopped near the site to watch the activity. During this time, the roof shed of the unfinished structure suddenly fell on her.
She suffered critical injuries after getting trapped under the rubble and later died at the spot, reportedly because she did not receive first aid in time.
Maryam Nawaz took notice of the incident. After this, Sikandar Hayat Khan Bosan visited the school and offered condolences to the grieving family.
While speaking to the media, Mr. Hayat said that the District Education Authority, Punjab CEO had inspected the construction site two days earlier, but failed to ensure proper safety arrangements.
He also said the injured student was taken to the hospital nearly one hour after the accident. The minister promised strict legal action against all those found responsible.
Rescue services were not informed for about an hour after the incident, and the injured girl was not shifted to the hospital in time.
Following the incident, the education CEO, the school principal and the contractor were arrested. A case was registered on the state’s complaint, and three engineers were also named in the investigation.