Dozens of students are feared to be still buried under the rubble of a collapsed school building in Indonesia.
Rescuers are running oxygen to those under the debris and working desperately to free any survivors trapped in the unstable concrete leftovers of the school in East Java, more than 12 hours after the structure fell.
A 13-year-old boy died as the Al Khoziny Islamic Boarding School suddenly collapsed on Monday.
Image:
The collapsed school building. Pic: AP
Dozens more injuries have been reported. The number of dead is expected to rise, as many of those injured are in a critical condition.
Rescue workers, police and soldiers digging through the night pulled out eight weak and injured survivors.
About 38 are thought to still be under the rubble – mostly boys aged between 12 and 17.
Image:
Search and rescue officers at the scene. Pic: Reuters
Rescue efforts had to be temporarily suspended on Tuesday as the collapsed concrete shook suddenly, indicating another collapse could be imminent.
People ran for their lives, some screaming, as rescuers urged everyone in the area to avoid the building, including more than a dozen ambulances parked near the scene.
Image:
The collapsed school building. Pic: AP
One search and rescue officer, Nanang Sigit, said: “We have been running oxygen and water to those still trapped under the debris and keeping them alive while we work hard to get them out.”
He is one of several hundred rescuers involved in the operation, alongside police officers and other emergency personnel.
Read more from Sky News:
US military chiefs assemble for summit
Starmer to make major NHS announcement
Follow the World
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
Police spokesperson Jules Abraham Abast said students had been taking part in afternoon prayers in the building. It was undergoing an unauthorised expansion when it collapsed, he added.
“The old building’s foundation was apparently unable to support two floors of concrete and collapsed during the pouring process,” he said.