Officials say dozens of deaths in school collapse

Rescuers said that there are “signs of life” under the wreckage of an Indonesian school that collapsed, as 59 people are still missing.

Hundreds of students, most of whom were teenage children, were inside the two -storey Islamic Islamic School in the city of Sidwaro when it collapsed on Monday. Officials said at least five students were killed and about 100 were wounded.

Thirteen people have been released since the rescue efforts began, although two have later died in the hospital. Rescue operations were difficult due to the unstable structure of the building.

On Thursday, the BNBP mitigation agency said that rescuers using thermal aircraft had failed to discover the signs of life from the rubble.

“Last night, until (cleansing) the region to ensure silence. (We) hope we hope to use advanced equipment … we may hear some signs of life,” Lieutenant General Sohaaranto, President of BNBP told a press conference on Thursday afternoon.

“Scientificly, signs of life were not found.”

He added that the team decided to move to the “next stage” of operations – using heavy equipment to transport concrete panels. These debris blocks will be raised with cranes or cut into smaller pieces.

Rescuers He was not able to do this earlier because there are fears that the building would lead to collapse more, which risks the lives of any potential survivors.

The authorities said on Wednesday that crying and screaming could still be heard from the rubble.

Anxious families are waiting for school, many of whom are tears, but they hold the hope that their loved ones are still alive.

“I hope the best news is alive,” Mawlana Bayu Rizki Pratama, who lost his 17 -year -old brother, told AFP.

“I hope my brother will be found soon. I feel the sadness that I am thinking about being for four days.”

“I think my son is still alive.”

BNBP said on Wednesday that 59 people are still trapped in the rubble, although this number has been dramatically fluctuating over the past few days, as Soharianto said earlier that the data will be “conflicting” always in the “early stages” of the catastrophe.

The building was under construction when it collapsed, with the addition of two additional floors. BNBP later said that the basis of the unstable building means that it cannot support this weight.

The school administration did not get permits to add more floors to the building.