Misery of a State Primary School in Kebayoran Lama, Collapsed for Years

The building of SD Negeri Kebayoran Lama Selatan 09 in South Jakarta has been left in ruins since it collapsed two years ago, with no repairs carried out. Students have been forced to take lessons at another school.

According to reports compiled on Tuesday (21/7/2026), the state primary school building collapsed in November 2024. The school structure has appeared abandoned and neglected, with no sign of repair for the past two years.

Observations at the site this morning revealed a deeply distressing scene. Steel roof supports were twisted and piled haphazardly. Broken roof tiles were scattered across the floor, mixed with ceiling debris, wood, and books and stationery covered in thick dust. Several desks and chairs remained arranged in their original positions, now buried under the collapsed roof.

In one corner of a still-standing wall, a few class duty rosters remained attached, serving as silent witnesses to the last activities before the building was abandoned. Although the main structure has been empty since November 2024, the condition of the classrooms has barely changed. Four classrooms and a school health unit were reported to have collapsed.

Currently, no teaching or learning activities take place at the school. Hundreds of students have been forced to take lessons at a neighbouring school, SDN Kebayoran Lama Selatan 11. Only a corridor located a few metres from the rubble remains intact, and it is reportedly used as the headmaster’s office and for administrative purposes.

Students Crammed into Another School

The collapse of the school building has severely disrupted the learning process. Around 200 students have been relocated to the adjacent SDN Kebayoran Lama Selatan 11. Due to this arrangement, the students are forced to attend school in the afternoon.

“Because we are sharing the premises, our school session starts in the afternoon, so the children are understandably uncomfortable; it is not ideal when you have to borrow space,” said a parent, Evi (33).

Beyond the erratic school hours, the afternoon schedule means children lose their time for religious education or Quran recitation, which typically takes place in the late afternoon.

“Now that school starts at midday, children who used to recite the Quran rarely do so anymore. It has been two years since they stopped. Recitation usually happens after the Asar prayer. But here, school finishes at 5 p.m., from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. So, the children have no time for religious activities in the afternoon, and they are not comfortable studying either,” she lamented.

Evi expressed that parents can only hope for direct attention from the Jakarta provincial government. She urged the authorities to act swiftly to repair the school.

“We just want the Jakarta provincial government to please help our school, to expedite the process so the children can study comfortably again like before,” Evi said. “Our greatest hope as parents is to ask the Governor, specifically, to follow up on our school. We just ask for the best,” she concluded.

Collapsed Since 2024

Evi recounted that the school building did not collapse all at once. She said the incident occurred during the school holiday for the regional head elections on 27 November 2024. Because teaching activities were on break, no one was at the school when the building began to suffer damage.

“Initially, the incident happened during the election holiday. So, no one knew about it, not even the school guard,” Evi said.

According to Evi, the information first came from local residents. Signs of damage began to appear in the morning. She said the building did not collapse instantly but tilted slowly.

“It was the local residents who first noticed, around 6.30 a.m. or 7 a.m. The collapse was not sudden; it happened slowly, not a sudden crash like that. It was gradual,” Evi recounted.

The building finally collapsed when bad weather struck the area that afternoon. Heavy rain caused the already leaning structure to give way completely.

“Then, when heavy rain fell that afternoon, it suddenly came crashing down. We all got the information from residents, and then the school updated us, and we found out from the school right away,” she said.

Pramono Orders Immediate Repair

Responding to the situation, Jakarta Governor Pramono Anung confirmed that the state primary school building would be repaired. Pramono admitted he only became aware of the school’s condition after a video of the site went viral on social media.

“First, I want to address this state primary school in Kebayoran Lama. We will handle it immediately, and frankly, I only found out about it when it went viral,” Pramono said in Mampang, South Jakarta, on Tuesday (21/7).

Pramono noted that the vastness of Jakarta means not all issues on the ground can be monitored directly. Therefore, he said he pays special attention to problems that become public concerns.

“So, for this state primary school in Kebayoran Lama, we will resolve it immediately. I assure you, we will resolve it immediately,” he stressed.