WHEN IT RAINS, IT POURS
Boards struggle to get flood-damaged schools repaired in time
Two Edmonton high schools are scrambling to repair flood damage that warped floors and walls and wrecked band instruments.
A sewer backup during an early August storm caused an estimated $1.2 million in damage to St. Joseph High School, Edmonton Catholic School District spokeswoman Lori Nagy said.
The deluge filled the school’s basement with more than a metre of water, destroying at least 30 musical instruments, wrecking a theatre set and drenching the school’s costume collection.
“It’s a huge loss for the school,” Nagy said. “It’s well-known for its music program and it will really be a heart-wrenching loss for the students.”
All the flooring and part of the wall in the school’s basement have been ripped out and are being replaced, she said. Although the building repairs should be complete when classes begin Thursday, assessing and replacing the school’s collection of instruments will take longer. Although some brass instruments may be all right after repair and cleaning, two bass drums, an electric xylophone and a sheet music collection were among the casualties.
The school district will work with the city to see if there’s something that can be done to prevent more sewer backups, Nagy said.
Sixteen public school sites also flooded during heavy rainstorms in July, causing an estimated $200,000 in damage, Edmonton Public Schools spokeswoman Raquel Maurier said.
Among the hardest hit was Harry Ainlay High School. Maurier said 14 of 67 classrooms at the school were affected, as well as a small gym and rotunda.
Water reached as high as a metre in some classrooms, where drywall had to be replaced. Although classrooms will be ready for students’ return, the rotunda and gym floor will need another few weeks of work.
“The principal said the school’s custodians and restoration company have done a really great job to ensure the school will be ready,” Maurier said.
She said most of the flooding, including at Harry Ainlay, was caused by roof leaks, though some resulted from sewer backups. The district’s central office building, Victoria, Mayfield, Inglewood and Greenfield schools, plus Amiskwaciy Academy were some of the other buildings damaged.