A fire of unknown origin destroyed a section of the North Ruimveldt Multilateral Secondary yesterday and Minister of Education Priya Manickchand has since assured that the education of the more than 500 enrolled students will not be disrupted.
The fire was reported to have started around 1pm and quickly ripped through a building that housed the Science and Information Technology (IT) labs, the Home Economics Department and a number of classrooms. Firefighters battled the flames up to last evening when they were eventually put out. Up to press time there were at the scene monitoring.
The North Ruimveldt Multilateral Secondary school, which is among the List ‘A’ schools in Georgetown, has an enrollment of 512 students and 39 teachers.
At the time the fire started, no one was present in the building.
The fire is suspected to have started in the upper flat of the building that was destroyed.
In an invited comment, acting Fire Chief Gregory Wickham yesterday told Sunday Stabroek that investigators were working up to late yesterday afternoon to determine which might have caused the fire.
“We have the investigators here on the ground and they are going through the phase, interviewing persons and so,” Wickham said. “We are actively engaging the fire and [the] investigation is going on at the same time”.
When Sunday Stabroek arrived at the scene, the police had already cordoned off the roads surrounding the school and traffic was diverted.
A number of fire tenders were present and firefighters were trying to extinguish the blaze.
However, they experienced difficulty in sourcing water.
An eyewitness, Sharmaine (only name given), who operates a snackette in close vicinity to the school, told reporters that she noticed smoke coming from the top flat of the building that was destroyed and she called the Guyana Fire Service as a result.
“…It was a straight smoke like. From the front to the back. Was just a smoke, a little smoke that’s why we call the ‘fire reel’[ fire tender]. We keep calling. We make like three calls. When we do get on they said they on the way,” she said.
According to Sharmaine, four fire tenders responded about 30 minutes after the call was placed but none of them had water. “When they came, there was no water in the ‘fire reel’[fire tender]. Like four came,” she noted.
As the fire spread through the building, efforts were made to control it from entering adjoining school buildings.
The labs contained chemicals, which also contributed to the fire. Loud explosions could have been heard coming from the building as the fire raged.
Several, persons including residents from communities surrounding the school, were also heard expressing dissatisfaction at the GFS’ response to the fire.
Many believed had they responded more promptly and arrived equipped with water, the fire could have been brought under control.
“This ain’t coming back. The school done gone. It done,” one woman was heard saying as the fire worsened. “This fire just bellowing,” another woman said.
A number of staff members, including the headmistress Allison Cosbert, Deputy head and teachers, also rushed to the scene after learning of the fire. “I never expected something of this nature to happen,” Cosbert said. “When you are heading a school and such a tragedy like this happens, it really devastates you,” she later added.
‘Not interrupted’
Manickchand and Minister of Home Affairs Robeson Benn were present during the early stages of the fire.
After observing for a while, Benn made his way into the school compound and went into the burning building. Minutes later, he was seen exiting. At that point, his skin was soaked from the water used to extinguish the fire and he seemed to have been stifled by the thick smoke.
Providing a comment, Manickchand told the media that efforts will be put in place to ensure that the education of the students of the school are not interrupted.
“To all the students of this school, I want to say to you now that your Government is going to make arrangements to make sure your education is not interrupted,” she assured.
Manickchand said 65 students are preparing to sit the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examination.
In a statement issued yesterday afternoon, the Ministry of Education said that officials from the ministry will be meeting over the next few hours to design a plan which will ensure that all students from the school sitting the CSEC examination are not affected.
“We are going to put those arrangements in place immediately. In fact, there are officers presently working to determine where we are going to place the students for CXC to do their various exams,” Manickchand told reporters.
In addition, Manickchand also pledged her support to the teachers and staff of the school and has committed to providing the necessary support needed in moving forward. “This is extremely unspeakable loss here but it’s one we will overcome. We are going to work very hard to make sure this does not disrupt students…..It’s a big loss but we are going to work around the clock to make sure you are not in any way disadvantaged as students, teachers or staff,” she said.
An update on the decided measures will be provided within the next 48 hours, the Ministry yesterday said.
