A towering 5-meter high residential wall in Kalibata, South Jakarta, dramatically collapsed onto SMPN 182, a local junior high school. The massive structure toppled towards the school grounds, completely demolishing its perimeter fence and a section of the garden.
The significant incident occurred on a Sunday afternoon, February 15th. Miraculously, there were no fatalities or injuries reported, a profoundly fortunate outcome attributed to the timing of the collapse.
Naldo (30), a package courier and local resident, recounts being the first to report the structural failure to the school authorities. He was present at the scene, delivering packages when the event unfolded. “It was already leaning before, you know. We just passed by, then I happened to be standing by here, delivering a package,” he explained.
“When it collapsed, there was a tremor, like a small earthquake. After that, I immediately contacted the school. They were the ones who suffered the damage,” Naldo recalled. He highlighted the critical timing, emphasizing that the school was on holiday. “It was a huge stroke of luck that it happened on a holiday, so no one was hurt. If it had been a regular school day, there would have been many casualties,” he added.
The Wall Had Been Leaning for a Long Time
Naldo further revealed that he had observed the residential wall leaning for an extended period before its eventual collapse. “It was leaning, yes, then it collapsed. I heard the sound and immediately came here,” he stated. He described experiencing a tremor akin to an earthquake, feeling the ground shake slightly, and witnessing clouds of construction dust erupting as he arrived at the site. “It was like an earthquake, a slight shake. Then I first saw all the dust,” he recounted.
Following the collapse, Naldo swiftly contacted the school, which responded promptly. “The school reacted immediately; everyone came here, as it was a holiday. I called the school staff, like the school guard. I contacted them at 11:28 AM, the incident occurred at 11:22 AM, which I checked because I recorded it on video,” Naldo explained, detailing his quick thinking.
This long-standing structural issue was corroborated by Iqbal (35), another local resident frequently active in the area. He confirmed that the wall had been visibly leaning for approximately one year. More alarmingly, cracks had begun to appear about a month prior, suggesting underlying “soil shifting” that contributed to the structural instability.
Iqbal also disclosed that the homeowner had previously received official warning letters from various bodies, including local community groups, the sub-district office, and the school itself. “Yes, from the community, the sub-district, the school. They were actually going to take action, but it fell before they could,” he concluded, underscoring a missed opportunity for preventive measures before the destructive collapse.