After Balcombe collapse, Crawford warns against repairs at open schools

Chairman of the Balcombe Drive Primary and Junior High School Board Alden Brown is accusing the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information of failing to respond to appeals for assistance in addressing the deteriorating infrastructure at the institution.

Brown said the school was forced to undertake repairs using its own limited resources as the new school year approaches, despite efforts to get the ministry’s attention.

“The school has somewhat been rejected by the Ministry of Education for some time. All the work done here has been organised by me, the principal, and the bursar,” said Brown.

He said the school had written to the ministry seeking assistance, but there was no response.

“When we saw September coming and we had no discussion with anyone from the ministry, I asked the principal if she had sent the letters off to the ministry asking them for assistance to repair a school that they have forgotten and she said ‘yes’,” Brown said.

He said he subsequently made follow-up calls to the ministry, but those efforts also failed to produce a response.

“So, with whatever funds we have, we called a contractor and he looked at the building and decided to do the work.”

The school’s decision to undertake the repairs came against the background of growing concerns about the condition of the building, including deteriorating columns supporting corridor roofs, and compromised concrete walls, where joints had begun to separate.

Brown said pieces of concrete had also been falling from the structure, with one such piece reportedly narrowly missing a student’s head.

“So, we decided to attack this section first,” he said.

However, the repair exercise turned deadly when a 45-year-old labourer, Shine Johnson, from a Gordon Town address, was killed while attempting to demolish columns supporting a concrete structure covering a walkway between two buildings.

The labourer was reportedly working on the columns when the structure collapsed, burying him beneath the falling concrete.

Brown said he was in his office when he received news of the accident and immediately contacted the contractor, who was away securing paint.

According to Brown, he questioned the contractor about why the worker had been allowed to carry out the demolition in his absence.

He said the contractor told him that he had not instructed the worker to begin the work before he returned.

He further said the contractor reported that the labourer had taken it upon himself to start digging at the base of the columns.

Brown noted that all the columns had decayed steel reinforcement and were unable to continue supporting the corridor roof, which had several black water tanks on it.

The structure subsequently collapsed, killing the worker.

Brown said the incident underscores the urgent need for the Ministry of Education to address the school’s condition. However, there was no indication from him that the school would not reopen its doors to students next week.

He said the school is badly in need of repairs and called for the ministry to give it much-needed attention.

Crawford: Other schools at risk

Opposition Spokesman on Education and Early Childhood Damion Crawford, who visited the school on Wednesday, said the situation at Balcombe Drive Primary highlights the wider problem of deteriorating school infrastructure across Jamaica.

Crawford said that since December last year, he had been expressing concern about the standards and quality of school infrastructure, particularly institutions affected by hurricane damage.

“The circumstances existing here are circumstances that can be experienced throughout any of our schools that are in disrepair from infrastructure damage caused by decay or hurricane damage,” Crawford said.

“This particular school has suffered from neglect from the Ministry of Education for some time,” he indicated.

Crawford said his tour of the school revealed other areas that could pose risks to students and staff.

“Where we are now, the ministry should review its decision to have construction and education going on at the same time within our schools. This represents a clear and present danger to our students and we don’t believe that, after seeing this experience, the ministry should continue as they have proposed.” Crawford argued.

He called for independent building inspectors to conduct inspections of primary schools at least annually to identify structural problems before they become serious threats.

Crawford also argued that primary schools should be subjected to a requirement similar to that imposed on basic schools, which must obtain a letter of no objection from municipal corporations regarding the readiness of their buildings.

Technical guidance needed

Richard Mullings, president of the Incorporated Masterbuilders Association of Jamaica, speaking generally about demolition work, said such exercises require proper technical planning and supervision.

“In demolishing a structure it does require technical guidance, meaning engineering input as to how to demolish which element at which time,” he told The Gleaner.

“It should be done using a sequence as to how the demolition should take place. Understanding that will tell how to safely implement each sequence.”

Mullings said the sequence could involve the use of bracing and temporary supports, depending on the condition and type of structure.

He said in the case of a multi-storey structure, temporary supports may be required and demolition could begin with the upper floor, depending on the state of the building.

The Gleaner made several attempts to contact Dr Kasan Troupe, permanent secretary in the education ministry, for comment on Brown’s claims. An email was subsequently sent to Troupe, who had not replied up to press time, and copied to a ministry representative who indicated that a response would not have been likely before today.

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