Three people have been killed as Indonesian rescuers race to find 38 people feared trapped beneath the rubble of an Islamic boarding school that collapsed in East Java during afternoon prayers.

There were 99 people who survived and were taken to hospital following Monday's collapse at the Al Khoziny boarding school in Sidoarjo, a town about 780km east of Jakarta, according to Mohammad Syafii, head of Indonesia's search and rescue agency.

Heavy slabs of concrete and other rubble and unstable parts of the building hampered rescue efforts, said Nanang Sigit, a search and rescue officer.

Heavy equipment was available but not being used due to concerns that it could cause further collapse.

Earlier on Tuesday, disaster mitigation agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari said the unstable building co

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