Indonesia School Collapse: 91 missing and three dead as rescue efforts continue

Rescue teams and frantic families continued searching rubble for the second day after a building at an Islamic boarding school in East Java collapsed, leaving three dead and 91 students missing, officials said.

The Al Khoziny school building in Sidoarjo, around 780 km east of Jakarta, collapsed while students were performing late afternoon prayers in a mosque on the lower floor. Upper floors of the building were under construction at the time.

By Tuesday evening, authorities had recovered three bodies, while dozens of teenagers remained trapped beneath heavy concrete slabs. Ninety-nine students and staff had been accounted for, with 26 of the injured receiving treatment at local hospitals.

Rescuers detected signs of life under the debris. “We used a camera and saw six victims moving their legs when they saw the light,” said Nanang Sigit, head of the local rescue agency.

Relatives described harrowing attempts to reach their children. Holy Abdullah Arif, 49, wept as he held up a photo of his nephew, Rosi, still missing. “I ran around screaming, ‘Rosi! If you can hear me, get out!’ A child answered, stuck in the rubble. I asked if it was Rosi. The child cried, ‘God, no, help me!’”

Families gathered around a list of known survivors, anxiously scanning for their loved ones’ names. Authorities deployed an excavator and crane to remove rubble but cautioned against heavy machinery directly on the structure, fearing further collapse.

“The rescuers are still searching for 91 people,” said Abdul Muhari, spokesperson for the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNBP).

The collapse reportedly occurred after foundation pillars failed to support the added weight of new construction on the fourth floor. “Stricter safety standards and careful oversight of building projects are urgently needed to prevent tragedies like this,” Muhari said.

Local media reported that construction had been ongoing for nine months. Concerns about lax building standards are widespread in Indonesia, where incomplete structures are often left to allow owners to add floors later.

This is the latest in a series of deadly building collapses in Indonesia. Earlier this month, three people died when a building hosting a prayer recital collapsed in West Java.

In 2018, seven teenagers were killed in Cirebon when a rehearsal venue collapsed, and at least 75 were injured when the mezzanine floor at Jakarta’s stock exchange collapsed.

Rescue teams continue the painstaking search, working against the clock to save any remaining survivors while authorities investigate the causes and enforce safety measures.