The death toll from the collapse of an Indonesian school building has increased to 17, according to officials, with rescue teams utilizing heavy machinery to locate additional individuals still trapped beneath the debris.
A section of the multi-story boarding school unexpectedly crumbled on Monday while students were assembling for their afternoon prayers.
Rescue workers recovered two complete bodies and a body fragment from the wreckage on Saturday, pushing the death toll to 17, as stated by Yudhi Bramantyo, the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) operation director.
Yudhi mentioned on Saturday that the ongoing evacuation efforts are concentrating on the northern segment, which is separate from the main structure.
Local search and rescue agency leader Nanang Sigit corroborated the revised death toll in a separate announcement.
Earlier on Saturday, authorities reported the retrieval of nine bodies on Friday.
Before the latest discoveries, National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) chief Suharyanto had stated that rescue workers were searching for 49 individuals still unaccounted for.
Suharyanto, known by a single name like many Indonesians, expressed the possibility of discovering more victims as heavy machinery is deployed to clear areas where individuals are presumed to be trapped beneath the wreckage.
“We are now prioritizing a significant cleanup operation after the recovery of the last victim last night, with the involvement of heavy equipment in the collapsed zones,” he remarked, as conveyed by broadcaster Kompas TV.