FLOODS WON’T DAMPEN SCHOOL SPIRIT

ALMOST all ll of f T Townsville’s schools have felt the impact of the city’s record-breaking floods.

Whether classrooms became waterlogged, the heavy rain and floodwaters caused damage to the school’s infrastructure or the campuses were impacted by mould and mildew, hundreds of students around the region have been unable to return to classes.

Every school in the region was closed just days after the first day of Term 1 for the year, meaning most classes will start from scratch when they do return.

Numerous schools are still closed, well over a week after students first went home to stay safe from the weather with their families.

One of the hardest-hit schools which remains closed is Oonoonba State School, with the entire suburb one of the most severely affected in the region.

School captain Angelina Parliaros (pictured right with mum Drosia) spoke out in yesterday’s Townsville Bulletin of her heartbreak, after losing both her school and her home in the floods.

Angelina, 11, shared an emotional letter she wrote to her classmates with the Bulletin reminding them that they’ll get through the disaster as a team.

“If we can all find a way to help each other during this tough time, we can come out stronger,” Angelina wrote to her schoolmates.

“We can support each other by phoning our friends to see how they are and asking others if they are OK.”

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk ( pictured above left) visited Oonoonba State School last week to see the damage first hand. About 50 personnel from the 3rd Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment (pictured above centre) have also been at the school, helping clean out mud in the hope that classes can resume this week.

A reopening date for Oonoonba State School has not been confirmed.

Much of Railway Estate and surrounding suburbs suffered significantly in the floods, meaning Railway Estate State School was in the firing line.The school announced it reopen today after being closed for more than a week.The school hosted a working bee over the weekend, with students, families, staff and more all coming together to help get the school looking spick and span again.

Belgian Gardens State School only reopened on Monday after suffering some damage during the floods. A number of classrooms at the school required brand new carpets, with some classes having to shift to other areas of the school.Belgian Gardens shared a photo (pictured above) of their new Prep play area during the height of the rain event on their social media.

St Margaret Mary’s College sustained a fair bit of damage in n the floods, with 14 classrooms and a number of other learning areas affected (pictured above).The college welcomed back Years 7, 11 and 12 last week, with h the full cohort back at school this s week.The students didn’t let the rain stop them though, with a massive ‘Just Dance’ session late last week ( pictured right) proving g you can always dance in the rain.