Catastrophe Deepens as Indonesian School Collapse Death Toll Rises to 54
News Agency
The death count from the structural failure of an educational facility in Indonesia has climbed to 54, as confirmed by officials, with rescue teams continuing their search for more than a dozen missing individuals.
Numerous pupils, mostly adolescent males, had assembled for religious services at the religious educational institution in East Java when the building collapsed while undergoing construction.
Indonesia's disaster mitigation agency describes this as the country's most fatal disaster this year. Emergency workers are anticipated to complete their search operation for thirteen individuals ensnared under debris by evening.
Investigation Ongoing into Structural Failure
Investigators are still examining the reason behind the structural failure. Some officials suggested the two-storey building caved in due to an inadequate base.
"Among all the disasters in 2025, whether natural or man-made, there hasn't been as many dead victims as the incident in Sidoarjo," declared a representative from the disaster mitigation agency during a media briefing.
The overall number includes at least two individuals who were rescued from the debris but later died in hospital.
School Background and Oversight Issues
The facility is a traditional religious educational center in Indonesia, referred to as a pesantren.
Numerous Islamic schools operate without formal oversight, lacking comprehensive oversight or consistent monitoring. It remains uncertain whether the institution had proper authorization to undertake additional construction.
Rescue Challenges
Emergency response efforts have faced difficulties due to the way the structure collapsed, leaving only tight spaces for emergency personnel to operate within, authorities stated previously.
Survivor Accounts
Those who escaped have recounted their terrifying survival stories with regional news outlets.
One teenage survivor recalled first "hearing the sound of collapsing materials", which "intensified and louder".
The young person immediately ran for the doorway, and while he successfully got out, he was wounded by collapsing materials from the ceiling.
