Rescuers turn to heavy machinery as hope fades of finding survivors of
Indonesia school collapse
[October 02, 2025]
By NINIEK KARMINI and DITA ALANGKARA
SIDOARJO, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian rescue authorities made the tough
decision on Thursday to start using heavy machinery to move large
sections of a collapsed school, with no more signs of life from beneath
the rubble and nearly 60 teenage students still unaccounted for three
days after the building caved in.
Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Cultural
Affairs Pratikno told reporters on the scene in Sidoarjo that the
decision had been made in consultation with the families of those still
missing.
Five students were rescued Wednesday by workers who tunneled into the
rubble using only hand tools. Pratikno said on Thursday work would
proceed with extreme caution even though no more signs of life could be
detected.
“In any case, we will be very, very careful when using the heavy
machines,” said Pratikno, who only goes by one name as is common in
Indonesia.
The structure fell on top of hundreds of people on Monday in the prayer
hall at the century-old al Khoziny Islamic boarding school in Sidoarjo,
on the eastern side of Indonesia’s Java island.
Authorities have said the building was two stories but two more were
being added without a permit. Police said the old building’s foundation
was apparently unable to support two floors of concrete and collapsed
during the pouring process.
Five people have been confirmed killed so far, and of about 105 who were
injured, more than two dozen are still hospitalized, with many said to
have suffered head injuries and broken bones.
The students were mostly boys in grades seven to 12, between ages 12-19.
Female students were praying in another part of the building and managed
to escape, survivors said.
Most rescues typically happen within 24 hours after such disasters, with
chances of survival decreasing steadily as time progresses.
Nearly 220 workers were on the scene Thursday with ambulances on hand
ready to take any survivors found quickly to the hospital. But
authorities also brought in large quantities of body bags, a tacit
acknowledgement that the odds of finding anyone left alive were rapidly
diminishing.
[to top of second column]
|
Rescuers carry a survivor who was pulled out from the rubble after a
building under construction collapsed at an Islamic boarding school
in Sidoarjo, East Java, Indonesia, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025. (AP
Photo/Alam Syahirul)
"We are no longer considering the possibility of survivors
remaining, but we will still proceed with caution, said Suharyanto,
the head of Indonesia’s National Disaster Mitigation Agency, who
also goes by one name.
The numbers of missing have fluctuated widely over the course of the
three-day recovery effort, and Suharyanto conceded that authorities
are still not certain how many students may be buried, having made
their estimate based on school attendance figures and information
from families.
“We really hope that these 59 people are not there under the
rubble,” he said. "It happened previously that parents reported
their children missing but turned out that their children were
somewhere else — I do hope and pray that they are not there.”
On Wednesday evening, hundreds of family members still anxiously
awaited news of their loved ones at the boarding school where they
arrived after hearing about the incident on Monday. They filled the
school's corridors with mattresses to sleep on, provided by the
local government, and were given food, snacks and drinks.
“I can’t give up, I have to believe that my son is still alive, he
is a hyperactive boy ... he is very strong,” said Hafiah, who uses
one name.
Her son, Muhammad Abdurrohman Nafis, is 15 and in the ninth grade.
She recalled that he ate his favorite satay rice with gusto when she
visited him on Sunday, a day before his friends told her that Nafis
was among those in the collapsed building.
She said Nafis is to graduate from al Khoziny’s junior high school
in a few months and wants to continue his education at a mechanical
engineering high school.
Hafiah spoke about how powerless she felt that she couldn’t get to
her son and help him. “I can’t give up as the rescue team is
currently trying to help our children out,” she said.
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
