Tragedy Deepens as Indonesia Educational Institution Collapse Fatalities Increases to 54
News Agency
The number of fatalities from the collapse of an educational facility in Indonesia has escalated to 54, as confirmed by officials, with rescue teams continuing their search for more than a dozen unaccounted persons.
Numerous students, mostly adolescent males, had assembled for religious services at the religious educational institution in Eastern Java when the building gave way while being renovated.
The country's emergency management authority describes this as the country's deadliest disaster in 2025. Rescue personnel are anticipated to conclude their search operation for thirteen individuals trapped beneath the rubble by evening.
Investigation Ongoing into Collapse Cause
Investigators are continuing to probe the cause behind the collapse. Certain authorities indicated the two-storey building collapsed due to an unstable foundation.
"Out of all the catastrophes in 2025, natural or not, there hasn't been as numerous fatalities as the ones in Sidoarjo," declared a deputy from the emergency management authority during a press conference.
The overall number encompasses at least two individuals who were extracted from the debris but later succumbed in medical care.
Institutional Context and Regulatory Concerns
The facility is a conventional Islamic boarding school in Indonesia, referred to as a pesantren.
Numerous Islamic schools function informally, lacking strong regulation or consistent monitoring. It remains unclear whether the institution had proper authorization to conduct building modifications.
Rescue Challenges
Search and rescue operations have proven challenging due to the way the building collapsed, creating narrow voids for emergency personnel to maneuver within, officials reported previously.
Survivor Accounts
Those who escaped have shared their harrowing survival stories with local media.
One 13-year-old eyewitness described first "hearing the sound of collapsing materials", which "grew louder and more intense".
The adolescent quickly rushed for the doorway, and while he successfully got out, he was wounded by falling debris from the ceiling.
