At least eight people including five children sustained injuries when walls of an under-construction block of Jamia Mosque Toheed located in Lahore's Government Employees Cooperative Housing Society (GECHS) near Model Town Link Road caved in because of heavy downpour during Namaz-e-Jumma, rescuers and police officials said. An eyewitness told Business Recorder that some 'Namazi' and passerby immediately rushed to the spot and helped the injured. "When I was returning home after offering the Friday prayer, I saw some people helping a child who was in a pool of blood as his head was bleeding," the eyewitness said.
Keeping in view the current spell of monsoon rains, he said, the administration of the mosque had pegged a temporary roof of hard plastic to avoid rains during prayers, particularly Friday prayers. "However, it could not sustain the weight of the downpour and eventually collapsed," he mentioned. "There was a huge panic."
He said many namazi called the police and rescuers but they could not reach after a considerable delay. Consequently, he said, the faithful loaded the victims into their vehicles and transported them to Itefaq Hospital and Jinnah Hospital so that they could get a medical treatment.
Meanwhile, a contingent of police and rescuers reached the spot and cordoned-off the mosque. The rescuers also provided first aid to the victims having minor injuries. In another rain-related incident, at least three people suffered wounds when a roof of a mosque near Chauburji collapsed. The victims were taken to a hospital where doctors pronounced them out of danger after providing them clinical aid.