At least eight people were killed after the roof of a house collapsed in Lahore, Pakistan. Authorities fear that several more people may still be trapped under the rubble. The incident occurred late Wednesday night (July 29) in the Harbanspura area of the city, according to Dawn.
Lahore Deputy Commissioner (DC) Captain (Retd.) Muhammad Ali Ijaz confirmed the death toll.
In a statement issued on Thursday morning, the district administration said the deputy commissioner was personally supervising the rescue operation at the scene.
The statement said that Rescue 1122 personnel, with support from the district administration, are continuing to remove debris and search for survivors. Every effort is being made to rescue those trapped alive.
Heavy machinery has also been deployed to speed up the operation. The deputy commissioner instructed officials to ensure the safe rescue of everyone believed to be trapped beneath the collapsed structure.
Authorities have also ordered an investigation into the cause of the roof collapse.
The tragedy comes just one month after the roof of a coaching center collapsed in Lahore’s Kahna area, killing 14 children. Following that incident, police filed a case against the coaching center owner and the building contractor.
Investigators found that excessive soil had been placed on the roof of the deteriorating building, creating an overload that caused the collapse.
Earlier this year, in early May, four children were killed and at least 20 others injured when the roof of a classroom collapsed at a private school in Dera Ghazi Khan district. The investigation revealed that sand and bricks had been stored on the roof during expansion work, causing it to collapse under the excessive weight.
