Sidoarjo: Indonesia has halted its search for victims at a collapsed Islamic boarding school after recovering more than 60 bodies, officials said.
The National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) announced that teams were stepping down after more than a week of efforts to recover victims trapped beneath the rubble at the al-Khoziny school. The building partially caved in on September 29 while students were attending afternoon prayers.
Basarnas head Mohammad Syafii remarked that, “Entering the 9th day, we have concluded the search and rescue operation for the victims.” Authorities said all debris had been cleared from the site, and no further bodies were expected to be found.
At least 61 bodies have been recovered, along with seven body parts, though some reports suggest the death toll could be as high as 67. Of those recovered, only 17 have been officially identified, according to the police’s Disaster Victim Identification unit. Severed limbs were among the remains discovered, said Budi Irawan, deputy chief of the National Disaster Agency.
More than 100 students and staff survived the collapse, the agency’s operations director, Yudhi Bramantyo, said. The incident is considered Indonesia’s deadliest disaster so far this year.
Frantic rescue efforts
Rescuers dug tunnels and called out to trapped victims in hopes of finding survivors, achieving some remarkable rescues. Thirteen-year-old Selendra Haikal Rakaditya was pulled from the rubble 72 hours after the collapse.
The operation concluded after families of the missing allowed heavy machinery to clear the debris, following the end of the 72-hour ‘golden period‘ for survival.
Cause under investigation
Investigators are examining the cause of the collapse. Initial indications suggest substandard construction was a factor, particularly in an unauthorised extension of the school that had been underway for weeks, with concrete poured on two upper floors.
The tragedy has raised concerns over building safety in Indonesia. Al-Khoziny is one of more than 42,000 traditional Islamic boarding schools, known as pesantren, across the country, yet only 50 have official building permits, according to the Ministry of Public Works.
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