Indonesian rescuers search for missing students after school collapse kills 49

SIDOARJO, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian rescuers searching for missing students after a prayer hall at an Islamic boarding school collapsed last week recovered the bodies of dozens of students over the weekend, bringing the confirmed death toll to 49.

Using heavy excavators equipped with jackhammers, circular saws and sometimes their bare hands, rescue teams diligently removed tons of rubble in an attempt to find the 14 students reportedly still missing. Rescuers found 35 bodies over the weekend alone, the National Disaster Mitigation Agency said.

The structure fell on top of hundreds of students, mostly boys between the ages of 12 and 19, on Sept. 29 at the century-old Al Khoziny school in Sidoarjo on the eastern side of Indonesia’s Java island. Only one student escaped unscathed, authorities said, while 97 were treated for various injuries and released. Six others suffered serious injuries and remained hospitalized Sunday.

Police said two levels were being added to the two-story building without a permit, leading to structural failure. This has triggered widespread anger over illegal construction in Indonesia.

“The construction couldn’t support the load while the concrete was pouring (to build) the third floor because it didn't meet standards and the whole 800 square meters (8,600 square feet) construction collapsed,” said Mudji Irmawan, a construction expert from Tenth November Institute of Technology.

Irmawan also said students shouldn't have been allowed inside a building under construction.

Sidoarjo district chief, Subandi, confirmed what the police had announced: The school’s management had not applied for the required permit before starting construction.

“Many buildings, including traditional boarding school extensions, in non-urban areas were built without a permit," Subandi, who goes by a single name, told The Associated Press on Sunday.

Indonesia's 2002 Building Construction code states that permits have to be issued by the relevant authorities prior to any construction, or else owners face fines and imprisonment. If a violation causes death, this can lead to up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to 8 billion rupiah (nearly $500,000).

The school's caretaker is Abdus Salam Mujib, a respected Islamic cleric in East Java. He offered a public apology in a rare appearance a day after the incident.

“This is indeed God’s will, so we must all be patient, and may God replace it with goodness, with something much better. We must be confident that God will reward those affected by this incident with great rewards,” he said.

Criminal investigations involving Muslim clerics remain sensitive in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation.

There has been no comment from school officials since the collapse.

“We will investigate this case thoroughly,” East Java Police Chief Nanang Avianto said Sunday. “Our investigation also requires guidance from a team of construction experts to determine whether negligence by the school led to the deaths.”

Karmini reported from Jakarta, Indonesia.

A staff inspects coffins prepared for the victims of a building that collapsed at an Islamic boarding school, at the police hospital in Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Trisnadi)

Rescuers arrange the bodies of the victims of a building that collapsed at an Islamic boarding school inside a refrigerated container at the police hospital in Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Trisnadi)

Rescuers use heavy machines to clear the rubble during the search for victims at a building that collapsed at an Islamic boarding school in Sidoarjo, East Java, Indonesia, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Trisnadi)

Rescuers remove the newly-recovered body of a victim of a building that collapsed at an Islamic boarding school from an ambulance upon arrival at the police hospital in Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Trisnadi)

Rescuers carry the body of a newly recovered victim of a building that collapsed at an Islamic boarding school in Sidoarjo, East Java, Indonesia, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Trisnadi)

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Lionel Messi's legacy was long secured when he came to Inter Miami and joined Major League Soccer. He'd won a World Cup, won dozens of trophies, was generally considered the greatest player in the sport's history.

He didn't need an MLS Cup.

But he wanted one — and got it.

Messi and Inter Miami have completed their ascent, beating the Vancouver Whitecaps 3-1 on Saturday in the MLS Cup final for the franchise's first championship. It came 2 1/2 years after the legend arrived in South Florida, a move that stunned plenty of onlookers at the time.

He set up the title-clinching goal with a 72nd-minute assist to Rodrigo De Paul, a play where Messi stole the ball and threaded a pass through a tiny gap in a wall of Vancouver defenders. De Paul got it in stride, pushed it into the far corner of the net — and Messi went airborne to hop into his arms a few seconds later, all smiles.

And as the final minutes ticked away, Inter Miami's pink-clad fans — most wearing Messi's No. 10 on their backs — stood and stomped and cheered. South Florida has seen NFL and NBA and Major League Baseball and NHL titles in the past.

It's a soccer town now, too. Messi made that happen. Tadeo Allende scored in the sixth minute of stoppage time — off another Messi assist, of course — to make it 3-1.

Inter Miami became the 16th franchise in the league's 30-year history to win an MLS title. And this extends a run of parity for MLS, which has seen five different franchises win championships in the last five years and eight franchises claim a title in the last nine seasons — only Columbus has won twice in that span.

It was also the culmination of a 12-year odyssey for David Beckham, part of Inter Miami’s ownership group.

He retired as a player in 2013 and his MLS contract said he could start a franchise at a discounted rate when his career ended. Beckham chose Miami and it took him years to finally make it happen; it wasn’t until January 2018 when the franchise was formally born, after he partnered with Miami businessmen Jorge Mas and Jose Mas, and even then the team didn’t have a stadium plan.

The team started play in 2020, and Messi arrived halfway through the 2023 season. Inter Miami was in last place in MLS at the time.

And then Messi arrived. The last-place team then now runs the league.

“It’s been an incredible journey,” Beckham said.

The trophy is Messi’s 47th for club and country, extending his global men’s soccer record. He’s now won at least 21 titles in one-match final situations, many of them with the core of this team — Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, Luis Suarez and Javier Mascherano, his longtime Barcelona teammates.

Busquets and Alba are retiring and got to go out as champions. Suarez’s future is uncertain. Mascherano is the coach now, one who changed Inter Miami’s lineup and tactics halfway through the season with this moment in mind.

And the 38-year-old Messi, the 2024 MLS MVP who seems like a lock to win the award again this season, still is like none other in the biggest moments with a contract that could have him playing with Miami into his early 40s.

“He’s not just here to enjoy living in Miami,” Beckham said. “His wife and the kids love Miami, but he’s come here to win, and that’s really what Leo is all about. He wants to win. He’s got that dedication, the loyalty that he shows to his teammates, to the city, to the club. Leo is a winner. It’s simple as that.”

Inter Miami went up 1-0 on an own goal in the eighth minute, before Vancouver tied it in the 60th on a score by Ali Ahmed. Another Vancouver shot hit both posts about two minutes later but stayed out, and Inter Miami got the lead for good when Messi found De Paul.

And when it was over, Messi went over to the Inter Miami supporters section and threw both his hands in the air. It was a moment 2 1/2 years in the making.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Vancouver Whitecaps' Ali Ahmed (right) celebrates his goal against Inter Miami with Andres Cubas during the second half of the MLS Cup final soccer match, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)

Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi (10) kicks a corner kicks during the first half of the MLS Cup final soccer match against the Vancouver Whitecaps Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Inter Miami forwards Lionel Messi (10) and Tadeo Allende (21) celebrate after Vancouver Whitecaps defender Édier Ocampo scored an own goal during the first half of the MLS Cup final soccer match Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Inter Miami midfielder Rodrigo de Paul (7) celebrates a goal with forward Lionel Messi (10) and defender Jordi Alba (18) during the second half of the MLS Cup final soccer match against the Vancouver Whitecaps Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)