A mezzanine floor in Indonesia’s Jakarta Stock Exchange collapsed on Monday injuring dozens of people.
CCTV footage of the incident shows workers and visitors walking through the building when suddenly the floor gives way, sending them plunging several meters towards the ground.
Police confirmed that at least 72 people were injured by the incident and are currently being treated in three separate hospitals, although there have been no fatalities.
“Slabs of concrete started to fall, there was lots of dust. Water pipes had burst,” stock exchange employee Megha Kapoor told the Telegraph.”I heard a loud cracking sound. I saw a lady unconscious stuck under slab of concrete.”
Inilah detik-detik robohnya selasar atap lantai 1 Tower II Bursa Efek Indonesia (BEI), Senayan, Jakarta, roboh pada 15/1/2018 pukul 12.10 Wib. Puing menimpa sejumlah orang yang berada di bawahnya. Lebih dari 70 orang luka. #BreakingNews #ElshintaHotNews pic.twitter.com/1km8Hzlun9
— Sutopo Purwo Nugroho (@Sutopo_PN) January 15, 2018
The moment the 1st floor of Jakarta Stock Exchange collapsed pic.twitter.com/dSAGMsSwEG
— David Lipson (@davidlipson) January 15, 2018
“We are still investigating the cause, but for now our priorities are the casualties,” police spokesperson Argo Yuwono told local media.
The exchange’s general manager Tito Sulistio confirmed that the exchange would remain open for the afternoon and that there were no fatalities from the incident.
“I guarantee that there were no fatalities,” he said. “I helped evacuate the victims to the park and as far as I know, the worst injuries are fractures.”
Built in the 1990s, the Stock Exchange building forms part of a two-tower complex in the center of Jakarta’s financial district and contains the offices of dozens of other organizations, including the World Bank.
The incident initially raised fears of a terrorist attack after the building was targeted by Islamist suicide bombers in September 2000, killing 15 people and injuring dozens more.
The chairman of the Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI) Tulus Abadi, urged authorities to take serious action as the incident had scared consumers.
“We urge the police to question parties from the building management to find out whether any laws pertaining to buildings have been violated. It may indicate the party responsible has failed to properly maintain the building,” Tulus wrote in a statement.
“We urge the Public Works and Public Housing Ministry to conduct a thorough inspection of all public buildings in the capital, such as shopping malls, hotels, and offices, to ensure they have followed proper safety standards,” he continued. “The incident may have created fears among the public.”
Standards of health and safety are reportedly loosely enforced across Indonesia. Last October, explosions at a fireworks factory in Jakarta killed 50 people and injured dozens more. A police investigation following the incident found multiple safety breaches.
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