all Eigendreh

Lower thirds:

00:02 Report by Ferdinand Himawan | DW Reporter | Sidoarjo, Indonesia
00:22 Abdul Hanan | Parent of a missing child
01:02 Muhammad Syafii | Chief of Search and Rescue Agency
01:43 Mudji Irmawan Arkani | Engineering Expert

Script:

For Abdul Hanan hope is still buried under the rubble. For two days, he has been waiting outside what used to be an Islamic boarding school in East Java. He’s praying his son is one of the children still   among the living. 

SOUNDBITE Abdul Hanan / Parent of a victim 
“Right now, it’s estimated that some people are still alive, and they’ve been able to call out their names. One of them seems to be my child, still trapped there.”  

Students were gathered in the main prayer hall on Monday when the collapse happened. The building suddenly gave way, trapping dozens of children.  Officials are now in a race against time. The building is unstable, and rescuers say any wrong move could cost lives. 

SOUNDBITE Muhammad Syafii / Chief of Search and Rescue Agency 
“We’re struggling to pinpoint the victims’ exact location because the building has completely collapsed. The space is very tight, and we can’t use heavy equipment because the vibrations could put them at risk.” 

Attention is now turning to the school’s management. For the past nine months, construction work had been underway to add two new floors to the building. Police are investigating whether this caused the collapse. Experts say the signs are pretty clear. 

SOUNDBITE Mudji Irmawan Arkani / Engineering Expert 
“Looking at the collapsed building, this happened because of a structural failure. From the collapse pattern, it looks like the columns and beams weren’t properly connected. I can see that the joints have already come apart.” 

Back at the emergency post, families are desperate for answers. The rescue team says they’ll keep working day and night until every survivor is found.