Tragedy Worsens as Indonesian Educational Institution Structural Failure Death Toll Rises to 54
Media Source
The death count from the collapse of an Indonesian school has climbed to 54, as confirmed by officials, with emergency responders continuing their search for more than a dozen unaccounted persons.
Numerous pupils, mostly teenage boys, had gathered for religious services at the Islamic boarding school in East Java when the structure collapsed while undergoing construction.
Indonesia's disaster mitigation agency characterizes this as the country's most fatal catastrophe in 2025. Rescue personnel are anticipated to conclude their rescue mission for 13 victims trapped beneath the rubble by evening.
Investigation Underway into Collapse Cause
Authorities are still examining the reason behind the structural failure. Certain authorities indicated the two-storey building collapsed due to an unstable foundation.
"Out of all the disasters in 2025, natural or not, there has not occurred as numerous fatalities as the ones in Sidoarjo," declared a deputy from the disaster mitigation agency during a media briefing.
The overall number encompasses at least two individuals who were extracted from the debris but later succumbed in hospital.
Institutional Context and Oversight Issues
The facility is a conventional Islamic boarding school in Indonesia, commonly known as a pesantren.
Many pesantren function without formal oversight, without comprehensive oversight or consistent monitoring. It remains unclear whether the institution had proper authorization to undertake building modifications.
Rescue Challenges
Emergency response efforts have proven challenging due to the manner the building fell, leaving only narrow voids for rescuers to operate within, officials reported last week.
Survivor Accounts
Survivors have recounted their terrifying escape experiences with local media.
One teenage eyewitness described first "noticing the sound of falling rocks", which "intensified and louder".
The young person quickly rushed for the exit, and while he successfully got out, he was wounded by falling debris from the ceiling.
