Students watch over school as mud rises

Children of Besuki Village, Published by The Jakarta Post on Thursday, October 26, 2006

With the rising sea of mud in Sidoarjo, East Java, threatening their school, three students at Jawahirul Ulum Muslim boarding school volunteered to stay behind during the Idul Fitri holiday and prepare for the worst.

The three -- Syafe'i, Nanang Hadi and Firdaus -- remained at the ready to evacuate school equipment, as well as overseeing activities at the prayer room located on the campus in Besuki village.

"Our friends went home to celebrate Idul Fitri with their families, so we are in charge of all the activities here," Nanang said.

The three chose to stay behind in case the nearby sea of mud flooded the campus, forcing the evacuation of the school's head, H. Amin Muhyiddin, and his family, as well as all the school's property.

"We were worried about what could happen to our school. That's why we decided not to go home," Syafe'i said.

These fears are not without reason. Besuki village, where Jawahirul Ulum is situated, is officially located in the danger zone surrounding the site of the disaster. The boarding school, which houses about 150 students, is located about one kilometer from the gas exploration well from which the mud is pouring, and only 200 meters from one of the embankments constructed to contain the mud beside the Surabaya-Gempol turnpike.

Last month much of Besuki village was inundated by up to one meter of mud. As a result, about 900 students from the village's elementary, junior high and high schools have been unable to attend classes.

"I was on campus when the mud starting flowing in," Nanang said, adding that everyone took shelter on the second floor of the boarding school's main building.

While the majority of students and faculty moved off campus to a safer area, boarding school head Amin and his family have insisted on remaining in their home.

"Due to that incident, we decided not to go home. We have to be on the alert in case the mud floods the village again, including our school," he said.

Nanang, Syafe'i and Firdaus said they respected the decision of their friends to go home for the Idul Fitri holiday until Oct. 31.

While confident they are doing the right thing, the three boys say it was not easy to pass on the chance to spend time with family and friends back home.

"Normally I would go home to my parents in Sidoarjo to ask for forgiveness. Now all I can do is pray for them from a distance," Syafe'i said.

Amin praised the decision of the three students to stay at the school over the Idul Fitri holiday.

Despite the earlier flooding incident, Amin expressed hope the school would not be shut down by the mud. "I'm sure the mud will not inundate these buildings again ... I don't know why, I just submit to my fate," said the school leader.

Amin, 82, also said this mudflow disaster should prompt the nation to ask itself some difficult questions. "Why is nature seemingly turning on us, and what has caused all of this?"

Meanwhile, many people took advantage of the holiday to get a closer look at the disaster area. Many people driving on the Surabaya-Gempol pulled off onto the shoulder of the road and got out to gaze over the sea of mud.

Also, work was halted during Idul Fitri on the construction of ditches to channel the mud into the nearby Porong River as people celebrated the holiday.