Rescuers are digging a tunnel to reach 59 people now believed deceased under a collapsed school in Java. Photo / Juni Kriswanto, AFP
Rescuers are digging a tunnel to reach 59 people now believed deceased under a collapsed school in Java. Photo / Juni Kriswanto, AFP
Rescuers detected “no more signs of life” at a collapsed Indonesian school where 59 people were believed missing days after it gave way, an official said Thursday, raising fears no more survivors would be found.
Part of the multi-storey boarding school on the main island of Java suddenly collapsed onMonday as students gathered for afternoon prayers.
After days of rescue operations, 59 people were still feared buried under the rubble after at least five people had been confirmed dead.
“We used high-tech equipment like thermal drones, and, scientifically, there were no more signs of life,” said Suharyanto, the head of the country’s disaster mitigation agency.
Five people are confirmed dead, and investigations suggest substandard construction caused the collapse. Photo / Juni Kriswanto, AFP
Distraught and tearful families waited anxiously near the site for news of their loved ones. Residents near the school offered to host the families in their homes as they waited, AFP saw.
“I’ve been here since day one. I am hoping for the best news, that my brother survives. I am still hopeful,” said Maulana Bayu Rizky Pratama, whose 17-year-old brother is missing.
“It’s been four days, I hope my brother will be found soon. I feel sad thinking of him being down there for four days,” the 28-year-old added.
Rescuers pulled five survivors from the rubble on Wednesday as frantic parents demanded searchers speed up efforts to find dozens of children believed to still be trapped.
Abdul Hanan, whose 14-year-old son is missing, said children under the rubble had been crying for help.
Relatives of missing students embrace as search and rescue operations continue. Photo / Juni Kriswanto, AFP
“The rescue operation must be accelerated,” he urged.
Investigations into the cause of the collapse in the town of Sidoarjo are ongoing, but initial signs point to substandard construction, experts have said.
The rescue operation is complex as vibrations happening in one place can impact other areas, said Mohammad Syafii, head of the National Search and Rescue Agency.
“So now, to reach the spot where the victims are, we have to dig an underground tunnel,” he told reporters.
But digging itself poses challenges, including possible landslides. And any tunnel will only provide an access route around 60cm wide because of the structure’s concrete columns.
Thermal-sensing drones are being used to locate survivors and the deceased as the 72-hour “golden period” for best survival chances comes to an end.
The operation could last longer than seven days if people are still missing, a search and rescue agency official told AFP.
The school collapse was so violent it sent tremors across the neighbourhood, said local resident Ani.
“I felt a vibration and then I heard a noise. I immediately ran to save myself. I didn’t realise at first it was a building collapse,” the grocery stall owner told AFP.
The building folded after its foundation pillars failed to support the weight of new construction on the fourth floor of the school, said the national disaster management agency spokesman.
Lax construction standards have raised widespread concerns about building safety in Indonesia, where it is common to leave structures – particularly houses – partially completed, allowing owners to add extra floors later when their budgets permit.
This month, at least three people were killed and dozens injured when a building hosting a prayer recital collapsed in West Java province.
