Schoolchildren’s Losses In Flooded Classrooms

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28536, 15 March 1958, Page 8

Schoolchildren’s Losses In Flooded Classrooms

“The Press” Special Service

HAMILTON, March 14. Staff, pupils, parents and helpers have had a harassing time at flooded schools in Te Kuiti, Otorohanga, and Huntly. Some parents are facing a triple loss, in shops, home, and children’s school possessions. The South Auckland Education Board has made a token advance of 5s a child in the meantime so that some essentials of stationery can be bought, but this amount is quite inadequate to replace all school bopks. One headmaster said the minimum amount needed to equip a standard IV child with stationery alone was 14s 9d. Nearly all children had also lost their writing materials, mostly fountain pens, and expensive books such as dictionaries and atlases. A helping hand was extended by two Auckland schools—Otahuhu College, which gave £3O, and Epsom Girls’ Grammar School, which gave £6O to Otorohanga College. These two schools “adopted” some students who had lost their school equipment in flooded homes. at Work At the Te Kuiti Primary School, the Ministry of Works is still carrying drinking water daily to tanks. The headmaster, Mr A. P. McDonald, the staff, pupils, parents, and a band of helpers, sometimes 60 in number, cleaned up before the flood waters had receded. They waded into the school, cut holes in the flooring, and used the floodwater in fire hoses to get rid of the seven inches of silt in the building. Schools have lost valuable equipment—tape recorders, film projectors, and typewriters—some of which has been recovered by the Education Board, and at-

tempts will be made to recon- [ dition it. The Te Kuiti Primary School lost its film projector, an ’ electric iron, a box of medical > supplies, and a number of foun- ; tain pens through pilfering, j “We could not shut the win- ■ dows or doors because of the 1 smell of the silt,” said Mr McDonald. i The piano is a “complete write- ? off,” as are two pianos at the Oto- ) rohanga Primary School.r Eighty pupils were absent from s the Otorohanga Primary School I on Tuesday. Some have been sent to other schools and some, - not yet recovered from flood i losses, are not suitably equipped / to go back to school. The head- - master, Mr L. W. Grieve, said his » pupils had lost almost everything they owned. “On top of what - their parents lost,” he. said, “this is very serious.” J At Huntly College, the losses - in books and equipment were not ), so great because the staff and r pupils were forewarned and - placed things on high levels. Now s the linoleum has to be taken up d and the whole building cleaned n out because silt has penetrated beneath the floor coverings. Cupboard doors will not shut, and the school grounds cannot be used. 1, Thirty pupils out of a roll of II 150 are still unable to attend the o Rangiriri School because of the ». flood waters. Mr G. Bryant has 5, been taking school lessons in a ;, woolshed at a farm at Glen Murd ray, but it is expected that some - of these pupils will be able to e attend school next week.