At least three students have died and dozens remain unaccounted for after an Islamic boarding school collapsed in East Java, Indonesia, authorities said.

Mohammad Syafii, head of the National Search and Rescue Agency, reported that as of 12:30pm local time (0530 GMT) on Tuesday, 102 people were involved in the incident: 99 survivors and three confirmed deaths.

Rescuers are searching for 38 individuals believed to be trapped under the rubble, the National Agency for Disaster Management added. Eleven people have been pulled from the debris, while 91 others escaped on their own. Seventy-seven victims were taken to nearby hospitals for treatment.

“Efforts to assess the site, monitor the remaining building structure, and prepare evacuation routes for victims are the primary focus of the teams on the ground,” the agency said on social media. It also urged stricter adherence to construction safety standards, emphasizing the need for technical supervision to prevent similar tragedies.

The Al-Khoziny Islamic Boarding School in Sidoarjo collapsed around 3 pm on Monday while students were gathering for afternoon prayers. Authorities said the foundation pillars gave way as crews were concreting the fourth floor, trapping dozens under debris.

This marks the second building collapse in Indonesia within a month. On September 3, a community hall in West Java’s Bogor district collapsed during a Quran recital, killing three people and injuring many others.

Source: Al Jazeera 

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