As thermal scans reveal no signs of life, Indonesia’s response to the tragic Al-Khoziny school collapse in East Java shifts to recovery, while questions mount over structural safety in Islamic boarding schools nationwide.

Hopes for dozens of students trapped beneath the rubble of the Al-Khoziny Islamic Boarding School in East Java have faded. Authorities have begun transitioning from rescue to recovery operations after the use of thermal drones and sensors turned up “no additional signs of life,” according to Suharyanto, head of Indonesia’s National Disaster Management Agency, who like many Indonesians, goes by one name. Relatives collapsed in grief around the site when the announcement was made.

Throughout Thursday, officials prepared to deploy heavy machinery to remove debris more swiftly. Until now, excavators were withheld out of concern they might harm any survivors. The site has been sealed off, as rescuers continue painstaking manual efforts to locate the 59 individuals believed to be missing. Local reporters say the building gave way while workers were pouring concrete on the fourth floor during ongoing construction, a detail confirmed by multiple rescue agencies.

Even several hundred metres from the collapse zone, the stench of decomposing remains was pervasive. A junior police officer, speaking anonymously, said plainly, “The missing are all dead.” He added that many had long feared the same.

Families who have camped at the site since Monday queued to provide DNA samples in an on-site tent, clinging to any chance of identifying their loved ones. Ahmad Ichsan, whose 14-year-old son Arif Affandi may lie in the debris, murmured a prayer as a buccal swab was drawn. “They haven’t found him yet, but I still have hope he is alive,” he told reporters.

Earlier in the operation, five students were rescued alive from an air pocket, raising a flicker of optimism. But the much-cited 72-hour ‘golden window’ has now passed. Officials have confirmed that five students died, and over 100 people were injured.

Muhammad Sobir, father of 13-year-old Nurdin, said, “God willing, he will be found alive. I will stay here until they find him.” His resolve mirrored that of many parents camped outside the school through the nights.

Forensic teams are moving swiftly to compare DNA from parents and recovered remains. Deris, a police medical examiner, explained: “We take buccal swabs and then test them against DNA from body parts or bones recovered from the site.”

Among the missing is 15-year-old Ahmad Suhavi. His older brother, 23-year-old Hayyi, spoke of the anguish of uncertainty. “We don’t know where he is located in the school, and we have had no updates,” he said. He added that their parents had sent him there to gain knowledge and become a better person.

THE TRAGEDY AS IT UNFOLDED

Nearly 10 ambulances lined up near the collapse site by Friday, as rescue teams worked through the day. Local disaster officials noted that the victims were mostly teenage boys, aged 13 to 19. Footage from the scene showed a crane being deployed, and rescue crews digging narrow tunnels through the debris, although no survivors were detected using motion sensors or thermal scanners by Thursday.

This horrific event, occurring at one of Indonesia’s vast network of Islamic boarding schools known as pesantren (over 42,000 serving some 7 million students), has raised urgent concerns about building safety in these institutions. Many critics have blamed structural flaws, insufficient foundation strength, unauthorized expansion, and lax enforcement of building permits.

According to Indonesian sources, the school was undergoing unpermitted construction to add upper floors when its foundational supports failed under the weight. The collapse reportedly occurred midday, as students gathered for afternoon prayers, causing multiple levels to pancake onto lower floors.

As the recovery phase begins, local authorities face pressure to launch a full investigation and hold responsible parties to account. Indonesia’s Religious Affairs Minister pledged to ensure that Islamic boarding schools comply with stricter safety standards and regulations going forward. Several local observers have called this incident a “wake-up call” for more effective oversight and enforcement.

Families gathered daily around whiteboards listing missing names. Some parents protested the lack of answers or apology from school management, accusing officials of shifting blame. Jayanti Mandasari, whose son was among the missing, said she had previously questioned the building’s structural integrity to school authorities but was ignored.

Villagers, volunteers, police, disaster crews, and national agencies like Basarnas (Search and Rescue) and BNPB (the national disaster agency) have worked side by side in the operation. Engineers warn that even minimal vibrations in remaining rubble could trigger further collapses, constraining how rescuers can proceed. Deep tunnels being cut through concrete beams measure just 60 cm wide in some zones.

Despite extensions of rescue timelines, authorities acknowledged that the chances of finding survivors were negligible, yet insisted on proceeding with care. Suharyanto remarked that “we are no longer considering the possibility of survivors, but we will still proceed with caution.”

The collapse has ignited broader debates about academic institutions built through private funding, possible regulatory gaps, and whether communities in less regulated areas bear greater risk from shortcuts in construction. The tragedy, commentators say, points to a systemic issue across the country’s religious education infrastructure.

For the families waiting at the site, however, neither pointed fingers nor official pledges bring any comfort. As one mother whispered through tears, “I just want my child back.”

Reporting from Al Jazeera, The Guardian, ABC.au, Reuters, and The Wall Street Journal contributed to this article.