The death toll from an Indonesian school collapse rose to 37 on Sunday, as rescuers recovered more victims buried under the rubble.
Part of the multi-storey building on Java Island suddenly collapsed on Monday as students gathered for afternoon prayers. Director of the national search and rescue agency, Yudhi Bramantyo, said, "As of Sunday morning, the number of recovered victims was 141 people. 104 were in safe condition, and 37 were dead.”
He said 26 more people are still missing, the majority of whom are presumed dead under the rubble. The death toll included a body part that rescuers retrieved from the rubble on Saturday. Meanwhile, the Director of the National Disaster Agency, official Budi Irawan, said the recovery operation was around "60 per cent", adding that he hoped it would be concluded soon.
He said, "We hope that by tomorrow everything will be levelled and we can determine the approximate number of victims who are in the rubble." The local search and rescue agency head, Nanang Sigit, confirmed the death toll of 37 in a separate statement.
The Indonesian authorities have begun an investigation aiming to find out the causes of the collapse, though the initial findings pointed towards the poor construction and substandard material use, experts have said. The rescue operations have been complex since the parents did not allow the use of heavy machinery at the rescue site.
There are possibilities that some people could have survived had the authorities mobilised heavy machinery on the site.
Later on, the families of the missing agreed on Thursday for heavy equipment to be used, after the 72-hour "golden period" for the best chance of survival came to an end. The toll is expected to rise further as the rescuers clear debris from the site.
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