In Indonesia&rsquo;s East Java province, grief has turned to fury as rescuers continue to dig through the wreckage of a collapsed Islamic boarding school where at least 54 people have been confirmed dead and more than a dozen remain missing. The collapse, which struck the Al Khoziny school in Sidoarjo during evening prayers on September 29, has become one of the deadliest school disasters in recent Indonesian history.
The hall, crowded with young boys aged between 12 and 19, came crashing down as two additional floors were being added to the century-old building. Rescue officials said they have been working day and night, using heavy excavators, jackhammers, and even bare hands to remove layers of concrete and debris in search of survivors.
&ldquo;We have retrieved 54 dead victims, including five body parts,&rdquo; said search and rescue official Yudhi Bramantyo, who added that at least 13 more people are believed to be trapped. &ldquo;We hope we can conclude the recovery today,&rdquo; he told reporters, his voice heavy with exhaustion.
Nearly 100 students were pulled out alive and treated for injuries. Six remain hospitalised in serious condition. Outside the ruins, anguished families wait with photographs and prayer beads, clinging to the hope that their children might still be found.
As the death toll rose, anger mounted over revelations that the school&rsquo;s management had been carrying out construction work without a proper permit. Local officials confirmed that two floors were being illegally added to the two-story structure. Police have now opened a criminal investigation into possible negligence.
&ldquo;The construction couldn&rsquo;t support the load while the concrete was pouring for the third floor because it didn&rsquo;t meet standards,&rdquo; said Mudji Irmawan, a structural engineering expert. &ldquo;The entire 800-square-metre section collapsed within minutes.&rdquo;
Sidoarjo district chief Subandi said the school had not applied for the mandatory construction permit. &ldquo;Many buildings, especially boarding school extensions in rural areas, are built without a permit,&rdquo; he said. Under Indonesian law, illegal construction resulting in death can lead to up to 15 years in prison and fines reaching nearly 8 billion rupiah (USD 500,000).
The school&rsquo;s caretaker, Abdus Salam Mujib, a respected cleric in East Java, made a rare public statement following the tragedy. &ldquo;This is indeed God&rsquo;s will so we must all be patient,&rdquo; he said, urging calm among grieving families. &ldquo;May God replace it with something better and reward those affected by this incident.&rdquo; His comments, while intended to comfort, have drawn mixed reactions from those demanding accountability.
Rescue teams, aided by volunteers and local residents, continue to dig through rubble and twisted iron beams as torrential rain threatens to slow the effort. The National Disaster Mitigation Agency said they will not call off operations until every missing student is found.
East Java&rsquo;s police chief, Nanang Avianto, vowed a thorough investigation. &ldquo;We will investigate this case completely. Our team is working with construction experts to determine whether negligence by the school led to the deaths.&rdquo;
As the nation mourns, questions about lax enforcement of building safety codes and the lack of oversight in religious institutions have resurfaced. Indonesia&rsquo;s 2002 building law requires all construction projects to secure official permits, a regulation often ignored in non-urban and religious areas.
For now, the focus remains on the search effort. Alongside the heavy machinery, prayers echo through the debris-strewn grounds, a haunting reminder of the lives lost, the lessons unlearned, and a tragedy that many say could have been prevented.

Indonesia School Collapse Death Toll Rises to 54

Rescue teams race to find missing students as anger mounts over illegal construction

Indonesia School Collapse Death Toll Rises to 54

Rescue teams race to find missing students as anger mounts over illegal construction

October 6, 2025 | 12:16 IST