“There are no signs of life” for dozens missing from the school’s collapse, say the rescuers

There are no signs of life under the remains of a collapsed Indonesian school, where 59 people are still missing, rescuers said.

Hundreds of students, most of them teenage boys, were inside the two -storey Islamic boarding school in the city of Sidoaro when he collapsed on Monday. At least five students were killed and about 100 injured, staff said.

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

On Thursday, the BNBP disaster agency said that rescuers using thermal drones were unable to find signs of life from rubble.

“Last night, we even (cleared) the area to guarantee silence. (We) we hoped that using complex equipment … We can hear some signs of life,” said LT Suhanto General, BNBP head at a press conference on Thursday afternoon.

“No signs of life were scientifically found.”

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

Rescuers I failed to do it earlier, as there were fears that this could lead to the building to collapse further, risking the lives of all possible survivors.

Authorities on Wednesday said crying and shouting could still be heard from under the rubble, as the anxious relatives camp at the school overnight, waiting for news for their loved ones.

BNBP announced on Wednesday that 59 people were still trapped in the ruins – although this figure has been hesitant significantly in the last few days, with suharyanto earlier that the data would always be “controversial” in the “early stages” of a disaster.

The building was under construction when it collapsed, adding two additional floors. Later, BNBP said that the unstable base of the building means that it cannot maintain this weight.

The regent of the city of Sidoaro says that the school management has not received permits to add more floors to the building.