One killed, six injured as school canteen roof crumbles in Denizli

DENİZLİ – Doğan News Agency

Most of the students were in class when the roof collapsed, local officials said. AA photo

The roof of a primary and middle school canteen in Denizli collapsed April 3, killing one employee and wounding six others. 

The incident at the Hacı Ahmet Paralı School occurred due to strong winds that reached 75 kilometers an hour from the southwest, the Denizli Governor’s Office said in a written statement. 

The deceased was identified as the supervisor of the canteen, 54-year-old Kamile Öztürk, the statement read. Two 13-year-old students and the 3-year-old child of an employee were among the injuried.

A larger catastrophe was avoided because most of the students were in class when the roof collapsed, local education official Sebahattin Akgül says.

The school was immediately closed and evacuated, while police have also launched an investigation. Although the closure is officially only set to last one day, the period is expected to be prolonged, police said after conducting an initial inspection of the site.