Search Intensifies for Dozens Trapped After Indonesia School Collapse; Death Toll Rises Amid Mounting Questions

Rescue efforts are in a critical phase as teams race against time to find 59 students still missing under the rubble of a collapsed four-storey boarding school in East Java, Indonesia. The Al Khoziny school, which flattened in what one official described as a “pancake” disaster on Monday afternoon during prayers, has now confirmed five fatalities, with the 72-hour “golden period” for survival chances rapidly nearing its end.

Devastated parents, camped outside the school since the incident, are demanding answers and accountability from the school management. Jayanti Mandasari, anxiously awaiting news of her 16-year-old son, Muhammad Mufi Alfian, expressed outrage, stating, “There is no apology from the management of the Islamic boarding school, they even tended to blame the other party.” She also raised concerns about the building’s flimsy construction, which she had previously protested without response.

Initial investigations point to substandard construction as the likely cause, with experts suggesting a foundational failure. Abdul Muhari, spokesperson for Indonesia’s disaster agency, indicated that foundation pillars failed under the weight of new construction on the fourth floor, calling for stricter safety standards. Rescuers, who managed to pull seven victims from the rubble on Wednesday—five of them alive—face complex challenges, including the risk of landslides and the need to dig narrow underground tunnels. Thermal-sensing drones are being deployed to locate survivors as hopes dwindle for those still trapped.

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