School building collapses in Indonesia, killing at least three and leaving dozens missing

A building under construction at a school in Indonesia collapsed on Monday, killing at least three students and injuring more than 100, and burying dozens in the rubble.

A rescue team worked through the night and continued into Tuesday to rescue additional students feared to be stuck after the collapse at Al Khoziny Islamic Boarding School in the East Java town of Sidoarjo.

“We have been running oxygen and water to those still trapped under the debris and keeping them alive while we work hard to get them out,” Nanang Sigit, who led the rescue effort, said.

Around 38 students are presumed to still be buried under the debris, National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari said midday Tuesday. Rescuers said they saw more buried bodies under the rubble, indicating that the death toll is likely to rise.

Heavy slabs of concrete and the unstable condition of the building have severely hindered rescue efforts, according to reports.

In the morning, work was temporarily put on hold when the collapsed concrete, leading many to fear for another collapse. The work resumed several hours later at 1:45 pm local time (8:35 am CEST).

Several hundred rescuers were involved in the effort, equipped with breathing apparatus, extrication tools, medical evacuation equipment and other support devices. Heavy equipment cannot be used due to concerns for further collapse, authorities said.

The students, mostly boys in grades seven to 11, between the ages of 12 and 18, had been attending afternoon prayer in a building that was undergoing unauthorised expansion when it collapsed, according to provincial police spokesperson Jules Abraham Abast.

The prayer hall originally consisted of just two floors, but had been renovated without a permit to add two more stories.

“The old building’s foundation was apparently unable to support two floors of concrete and collapsed during the pouring process,” Abast said.

Authorities launched an investigation into the cause of the building’s collapse.