66 Schools Flagged for Attention
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad – The Ministry of Education has deemed four primary
schools unfit due to post-earthquake damage and as a result, they will remain closed.
School reopened on for the start of the new school year on Monday last.
During a press conference on Saturday, September 01, Minister of Education Anthony
Garcia said that following the 6.9 earthquake last month, 66 schools were flagged for
attention as they sustained various degrees of damage.
He said the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Works and Transport were able to
begin structural assessments of these school within two days of the earthquake to
ascertain the damage and to get a comprehensive report on areas of repairs.
“These are schools that will be closed and I can assure you and the general public that
we in the Ministry of Education would be doing everything possible to ensure that in the
shortest time possible our children will have the opportunity to attend school.”
“I give this information so that the parents would know that certainly on Monday, those
children would not be able to attend schools but we are hoping that things would be put
in place as soon as possible so that our children and our teachers could return to
normal school life.”
Concerning the cost of repairs, the Education Minister could not give a figure, stating
that assessments were still being carried out.
He also disclosed that there was a likelihood that classes at schools with sewer defects
in central Trinidad with could be affected in the next few weeks.
“There is a possibility of other schools, particularly in central Trinidad that might suffer
some damages where sewer is concerned because of movement of the earth. We have
been advised that we must be on the lookout for similar actions with respect to the
sewer.” – CMC
