Balcony Collapses At Indonesian Stock Exchange

According to Bloomberg, a balcony at the Indonesia Stock Exchange in Jakarta collapsed leaving several people injured. No deaths were reported.

A mezzanine floor in Tower 2 of the Bourse’s complex collapsed a few minutes before the midday break. The majority of injured persons were women and students.

Despite the terrifying event, trading was unaffected. The stock market closed for its lunch break and trading resumed at the usual time of 1:30 p.m.

The New York Times reported that a total of 75 people were injured, according to the Jakarta police. Of the 75 people injured, 17 were transported to Mintoharjo Navy Hospital. Thirty people were admitted to Siloam Hospital near the accident site, according to the hospital’s spokeswoman Triana Tambunan.

A spokeswoman for the Indonesia Stock Exchange building’s management, Farida Riady, apologized for the accident, saying that they are not able to provide any detailed information as of yet regarding the cause of the accident.

Officials ordered the immediate evacuation of the complex after the collapse. Police spokesman Mr. Setyo ruled out the possibility of terrorism, stating that he’s sure that the collapse was not caused by a bomb.

Jakarta has been hit by multiple terrorist attacks in the past, of which an attack against a police post in central Jakarta in January 2016 was merely one. In the year 2000, the stock exchange was attacked by two rogue army soldiers who planted a car bomb in the building’s basement, killing 15 people.

Sky News reported that paramedics treated the injured on the grass and pavement outside the tower before transporting them to various hospitals.

The general manager of the Indonesia Stock Exchange, Tito Sulistio, guaranteed that there were no fatalities, and as far as he knows the worst injuries are bone fractures.

According to the BBC, more than 30 students gathered on the mezzanine right before it crashed into the lobby below.

Police had to use dogs and riot gear to push back journalists from the area where the collapse took place.

According to CNN, many of the students visiting the stock exchange were accountancy students from the island of Sumatra.

Indonesia is known for its poor construction standards where corruption sometimes causes safety checks to not be carried out thoroughly.