Two students from Jordan Hill Presbyterian School who were hospitalised on Wednesday night, after complaining about the scent from a leaking school sewer, have been discharged from hospital.
Six others who received treatment at the Princes Town District Health Facility were kept away from classes as the school was shut down indefinitely yesterday.
About 45 other students had to be taken home by their parents on Wednesday after they experienced bouts of nausea and vomiting, as well as respiratory problems.
In an interview, T&T Unified Teachers Association’s (Ttuta) first vice president Lyndsey Doodhai said classes were dismissed yesterday and the union advised all staff members not to stay in the school until the leaking sewer was fixed.
He also advised parents to keep their children at home. Doodhai revealed that health officials had already deemed the school unsafe.
In a letter issued on September 30, the County Medical Officer of Health (CMOH) for Victoria revealed that there was a crack in the septic tank around the PVC outlet which was causing raw sewage to flow onto the surface of the school. The CMOH recommended that the tank be emptied, sealed and repaired. Between September 30 and October 7, classes were dismissed early because of the stench.
However, Doodhai said, some mortar was used to patch up the tank and on October 7, the ministry’s school supervisor advised that the school be reopened.
This was done against the advice of the CMOH, Doodhai said, and Wednesday’s incident could have been avoided if proper precautions were taken.
“Ttuta is concerned about what happened. We believe that something like this could have been avoided if proper procedures were followed. We are calling on the Education Minister Anthony Garcia to launch a thorough investigation into this matter and say why the school was reopened without approval,” Doodhai said.
The school has 600 students and 24 teachers.
Tender sent out for contractor
An official of the Education Ministry said yesterday that the Education Facilities Company Ltd has opened tenders to contractors to repair the leaking sewer tank.
“Tenders will close on Monday and a contract is expected to be awarded by Tuesday,” the source said. The repairs may take between four and five days to complete.
More than nine schools had to be shut down this term because of sewer problems.