Teaching and learning have ground to a complete halt at Dingamanzi Primary School following a terrifying incident on Tuesday where a classroom ceiling collapsed onto Grade 3 learners, injuring 20 children.
The incident, allegedly caused by poor workmanship on an ongoing construction project, has prompted outraged parents to remove their children from the school indefinitely. Three of the injured learners were reported to be in a serious condition and were among those rushed to nearby health facilities.
The reporter described a scene of devastation. “This is what is currently left,” he stated, showing debris scattered across the classroom floor. “The ceiling collapsed inside a classroom filled with learners that were currently getting education.”
The school’s head of department, Victor Mabunda, recounted the harrowing moment the ceiling gave way. “It was just like teaching and learning was taking place like normal other days… then we just had a big noise,” Mabunda said. “We rushed to the class only to find that the whole ceiling is down and learners were critically injured.”
He confirmed that the classroom contained 48 learners at the time of the collapse, with 20 requiring urgent medical attention.
A major point of contention revealed in the report is that the building had previously been deemed unsafe by the Department of Labour. When questioned why it was still in use, Mabunda explained a fraught arrangement where construction work was supposed to occur only after school hours. He cited a critical shortage of space, revealing that the school had requested more mobile classrooms but had only received four of the promised units.
The community has pointed to alleged shoddy workmanship as the root cause. Hyoni displayed what appeared to be undersized nails used in the construction, stating, “The community is complaining about… allegations of shoddy workmanship.”
The collapse sparked protests from parents on Wednesday, further disrupting any attempt to resume schooling. Parents are now demanding the immediate provision of safe mobile classrooms and the swift completion of renovations.
In a developing response, the provincial education department has promised that five mobile classrooms are en route to the school. Ground crews were already on-site preparing the area for their installation, with hopes that teaching could resume by Monday.
Department of Education and the implicated contractor were reached out to for further comment and is awaiting a response regarding the investigation into the contractor and the next steps to ensure student safety. For now, the children of Dingamanzi village remain at home, their education on hold.