The Adrian T. Hazel and The Valley Primary Schools are the only two such schools where there has been a demolition of buildings deemed unsafe for housing children following the onslaught of Hurricane Irma. In each case, two of the school buildings were demolished.
In the case of the Adrian T. Hazell School, the main area housing the students is a block of eight classrooms on two levels. It was built as the first of a three-phase project with plans for completion at a later date. The repaired auditorium, following Hurricane Irma, is the other building where the students are being accommodated.
With the demolition of the two buildings at Valley Primary, the newly-built block, where the kindergarten section is located, is the main accommodating space for the students. As is the case with a number of other schools, UNICEF has provided a tent as an additional means of accommodation.
The Valley Primary School has the largest primary-school student population. Addressing the students at the reopening day on Monday, October 9, the Principal, Mrs. Jasmine Thomas, said in part in a colourful statement: “At The Valley Primary School, we will always aim for excellence. When you aim for excellence, you are aiming for the top because we don’t have excellence down there – except you want to be excellently rude and that is not an option.
“Excellently rude and excellently naughty is a no. We want excellence in positive things. The fighting is not excellence so no more fighting. We have buildings that were taken down. Let those buildings go. They are gone and I hope all the bad habits have gone with them. The backhoe and the trucks have raked up all the bad things – the bad rubble, the bad behaviour and went with it to Corito to burn. And so Valley Primary School should be a school of excellence because, as our motto says, ‘Aim for Excellence: and that’s what we want always.”
At the Adrian T. Hazell School, the Principal, Mrs Tracelyn Hamilton told the students: “Grade 3 and 4 are gone as two of our buildings have had to be demolished because they were destroyed by Hurricane Irma. We had a long, hard start, but we are happy to be back in school. We have missed quite a bit of time. We were supposed to be here from September 4, but we are coming back on October 9. While we have lost two of our buildings, we need not be sad because we are getting back two new buildings, just like this one.”
Three other schools, the Orealia, Vivien Vanterpool and Alwyn Allison Schools were also extensively damaged by Hurricane Irma but so far, after some repair work, are housing their students. In the case of the Morris Vanterpool School, its students been re-located in rented apartments which have been converted into classrooms.
All six Government-owned primary schools were reopened on Monday, October 9.
