Floods: Old age home takes in stranded pupils

MANTSHONGA – Pupils at Pemba DRC Primary School have found a temporary home at the Philani Maswati Old Age Home in Mantjonga, following the total destruction of the only footbridge linking the Dvokolwako community and the mission school.

The school’s Head teacher, Steven Dlamini, throughout the past weekend, was ferrying desks and other materials to the makeshift learning home in readiness for resumption of lessons on Tuesday.

Since the footbridge collapsed, only two pupils were able to report for school. These were the principal’s children, who were not affected by the flooded river because they stay within the school premises.

Lessons

However, the others had to remain home as it proved impossible to cross the Black Mbuluzi River. Prior to the new home, the learners had not been receiving lessons since the start of the rains.

“From February 8th, the pupils have not been going to school because of the rains, damaged roads and bridges.

“We began looking for alternative places to convert into classrooms and after a meeting with parents on the Monday of the first rains, it was agreed that we approach nearby churches to house us so we may conduct lessons,” said Dlamini.

Mkhiweni Member of Parliament Michael Masuku has been rather busy with finding a permanent solution to the problem now that it has become perennial.

Every year around this time lessons are disrupted because of the footbridge being swept away.

On Monday, he was also coordinating efforts by local communities to offer relief aid.

On the same day, he also gave the principal some leftover rice and beans just to feed the schoolchildren the following day.

He was not sure if the food would be safe enough if kept in a refrigerator overnight, but nonetheless he had no other alternative.

“The community came to us to request that all children must be at school despite the disaster caused by the heavy rains. It was then that they offered that the old age home be used to accommodate the children. That is how we found our way to the home,” said Masuku.

Masuku said they were assured that interactions between the residents of the old age home and their new guests would be minimal because there was a relatively large space for free movement of the children if not in class.

Pemba DRC Primary School came to the spotlight when Sibongumenzi Magagula topped in the 2022 Eswatini Primary School Certificate Examinations.

The number of learners has dropped by six after parents moved their children to other schools to escape the menace by the flooding river. There are eight teachers for the 124 pupils.

Three of these teachers stay at the school and when it rains again they risk not being able to give lessons. However, the principal has been offered a housing structure by a local resident to accommodate teachers so that they do not have to use the footbridge again.

Last week, disaster agencies reported that nearly 260 people had been affected by floods, while extensive damage to some infrastructure, including six bridges, was reported across the country.

On February 14-15, moderate to heavy rainfall was forecasted over most of eastern South Africa, most of Eswatini and central-western Mozambique.

Floods

Apart from the flash floods, there have been reports of the likelihood of partial effects of Tropical Cyclone Freddy already having made landfall in Madagascar in the Indian Ocean.

According to the Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System, it is feared that up to 2.2 million people, mostly in Madagascar, will be impacted by storm surges and flooding. Mozambique will likely be struck on Friday, according to that country’s national meteorology institute.

The nation had already experienced widespread flooding in recent weeks, raising fears that the humanitarian situation in the region may escalate.

Back at the Philani home, the principal reported full attendance by both learners and teachers.

However, the pressing problem is that of feeding because the new environment does not adequately accommodate school feeding in the same manner it was set-up back at Pemba.

Nomthandazo Mndzebele slept in the open when her hut fell but now, thanks to Baphalali Eswatini Red Cross, she has a tent she considers home together with her grandchildren.

These huts have been converted into classrooms following the sweeping away of a footbridge used by Pemba DRC Primary School pupils and teachers.

(Pics: Ackel Zwane) Pemba DRC Primary Head teacher Dlamini after one of the three classrooms was set-up in readiness for lessons on Tuesday. (R) Josephine Malamba deserved that long swig of a soda now that her stresses were over, for the time being.