GOVERNMENT has permanently shut down Globe and Phoenix Primary School in Kwekwe in the Midlands Province after 18 pupils were injured when a classroom floor collapsed into an underground mining shaft.
The incident occurred yesterday morning at 7.30AM shortly
after the start of lessons.
Of the 1 500 affected pupils, 900 learners will be
temporarily housed at the neighbouring Sally Mugabe Primary School while the
rest will attend classes under makeshift tents that will be erected at the
former Globe and Phoenix Mine offices.
All the injured pupils were treated and discharged at
Kwekwe District Hospital.
Some pupils fell into the shaft while others escaped
through the windows as the floor caved in.
When the Chronicle news crew visited the school yesterday,
teachers and pupils were in a state of shock. Parents and guardians rushed to
the school, located in the city centre after news of the incident started
circulating on various social media platforms. An emergency rescue team from
Zimplats Mine reacted swiftly and managed to retrieve the furniture and
stationary that had plunged into the shaft following the collapse of the floor.
The news crew observed that part of the classroom floor was
suspended in the air as there was nothing underneath to support it save for a
tunnel, which is a product of illegal gold mining that took place at the
school. The Civil Protection Unit (CPU) director Mr Nathan Nkomo visited the
school to assess the situation. He also visited Sally Mugabe Primary School
where the affected learners will be temporarily accommodated following the
closure of Globe and Phoenix Primary School.
In an interview, Mr Nkomo said: “The primary school has
been shut down permanently and that is the official position because we can’t
put the lives of the learners and the teaching staff at risk,” he said.
Mr Nkomo said the 1 500 pupils will be sheltered at Sally Mugabe Primary School and the former Globe and Phoenix Mine main offices.
“About 900 pupils will continue school at Sally Mugabe
Primary School while the rest will learn from a tent that will be erected at
the former Globe and Phoenix offices. This is because we don’t want to disrupt
their classes and lessons will resume on Monday,” he said.
Members of the Civil Protection Unit removing stationary
left by the pupils following the collapsing of the floor
Mr Nkomo said Government will soon identify a new site to
where the school would be relocated.
“Generally, there is a need for all public buildings which
include schools and Government offices in Kwekwe city centre to be re-inspected
to ensure that they are safe to accommodate people,” he said.
Mr Nkomo said the classroom floor collapsed as learners
were preparing to start lessons.
“I am told the teacher was not in the classroom at that
particular moment when the floor collapsed. When it collapsed, some pupils
including the furniture and stationery also fell into the shaft that is beneath
the floor and 18 of them were injured,” he said.
“I am glad that from
the doctors’ assessment, no one suffered serious injuries. They have all been
treated and discharged.”
Ward 6 Councillor Mclean Nyamucherera said the collapse of
the classroom floor was not a surprise since school authorities decommissioned
two classroom blocks last December fearing that they would collapse due to
illegal gold mining activities.
“At around 7.30 AM, there was a commotion at the school
such that the headmaster thought a snake had sneaked into the classroom. Some
learners were screaming and when the headmaster went to investigate, he
discovered that the floor had collapsed,” he said.
Cllr Nyamucherera said some houses and council
infrastructure such as roads and water valves close to Globe and Phoenix Mine
are also under siege from the illegal miners.
The officer commanding police in the Midlands Province
Commissioner Winston Muza said the collapse of the classroom floor was a result
of underground gold mining that took place some time back.
“When this happened, there wasn’t any illegal gold mining
taking place. We have been monitoring illegal mining in and around the school,
and we will continue doing so to make sure no infrastructure is damaged or
destroyed,” he said.
Midlands provincial mining director Engineer Tariro Ndlovu
said they have approached mining companies operating in the area to dispatch
their trained personnel to assist.
“Our mines inspectorate should be on the ground shortly so that
they ascertain the extent of the damage and where the shafts are heading to.
That way we will be able to know if there are any other places that are under
threat from shafts and tunnels left by illegal gold miners,” he said.
A parent, Ms Yeukai Moyo, said it was high time the school
was handed over to the Government.
“Since the school was owned by a mining company which has
since left, I think it is wise that it be handed over to the Government because
as it is, there is no one who is overseeing the day-to-day running of the
school. We are calling upon authorities to take this matter seriously because
our children are not safe,” she said.
“The affected class
is Grade 5B, and my child is in Grade 5A. Since the school has hot sitting, my
son also uses the same class which gave in. I thank God that he is safe, but
also pray for a quick recovery to those who were injured,” she said.
Kwekwe Central legislator Judith Tobaiwa said: “The
authorities should have closed this school a long time ago. This is a wakeup
call and I hope they are going to close down the school and relocate it to
avert another disaster.”
Local businessmen, Dr Solomon Matsa and Mr Energy Ncube
have pledged to cater for all medical bills for the injured learners and assist
with funds for the construction of a new school.
Kwekwe district development coordinator, Mr Fortune Mpungu
recently expressed fears that the District Government offices which house the
Civil Registry and his office could also cave in because of shafts underneath.
Chronicle
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