Tag Archives: North West School

North West Education department to report on Leeudoringstad incident

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BY REGINALD KANYANE

North West Provincial Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Education and Sports Development, Arts, Culture and Traditional affairs held a meeting with the Department of Education on Thursday and requested MEC Wendy Matsemela to go back and prepare a detailed and comprehensive report on the North West School for the Deaf incident; after the Committee found the one she presented lacked details.

 

The Committee had requested a brief report from the Department of Education after an incident that occurred at North West School for the Deaf in the early hours of Monday morning where a fire gutted down the school hostel, leaving three (3) learners dead and 53 others being hospitalised after suffering minor injuries.

 

The committee also requested the department to present a comprehensive report on the Christiana School for the Blind incident where a fire broke down at the school on the 29 November 2010, leaving four (4) learners dead.

 

After hearing about the incident in the media, the Committee went on a fact finding mission at the North West School for Deaf to actually find out what had happened, thus the request for the reports from the department.

 

Committee Chairperson, Boitumelo Moiloa said the department’s report could not be discussed at the meeting because it lacked detail, and left members of the Portfolio Committee having to guess what had actually transpired.

 

“It did not specify whether during the time of the incident, there were security personnel and care-givers at the school and educators adequately responded to the incident on time.

 

“The report can only be taken as a briefing document but then it still lacks detail and it did not include security and disaster management plans of the school,” said Moiloa.

 

The report for the Christiana School for the Blind incident was not signed; therefore the Committee rejected it on the basis that it was not a legal document that the Committee can hold the department accountable for.

 

The Chairperson said the Committee had requested the department to provide the Christiana School for the Blind incident report because some issues could have helped the department to ensure that special schools are properly resourced to avoid such incidents.

 

The department has been requested to submit comprehensive reports on both incidents by Monday, 31 August 2015. Those reports will be discussed in a meeting that will be held at the Legislature on Tuesday 1 September 2015 in the Legislature Committee Room2 at 16h00.

-TDN

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Deaf school fire: 53 confirmed injured

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The number of pupils injured when a fire broke at the North West School for the Deaf in Leeudoringstad has risen to 53, police said on Monday.

Police spokesperson Major Pelonomi Makau said a building caught fire at the North West School for the Deaf in the early hours of Monday.

“It is alleged that three children were asleep when the fire broke out at the girls hostel. According to the information available at this stage, three girls, aged 16, 17 and 18 were trapped inside the building and died on the scene, while 53 were admitted at the hospital for smoke inhalation and injuries when they jumped from the first to ground floor,” she said.

The police earlier Monday morning said 23 pupils were injured.

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‘Three died in North West school fire’

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BY REGINALD KANYANE

Premier Supra Mahumapelo has expressed shock at the outbreak of fire at the North West School for the Deaf in Leeudoringstad which led to the demise of three learners.

Mahumapelo has on behalf of the Bokone Bophirima Provincial Government conveyed heartfelt condolences to the families of the 3 deceased learners.

 

A further 13 learners were injured when fire erupted as a result of smoke inhalation at the school in the early hours of Monday at around  01h00am. The learners were subsequently rushed to a hospital in Wolmaranstad were they currently receive treatment.

 

North West Office Of The Premier acting spokesperson, Brian Setswambung said Mahumapelo has upon learning of the tragic incident set up a technical team which comprises of senior administrators from the departments of Education and Sport Development, Health, Social Development and Community Safety and transport Management.

 

“The technical committee will amongst others gather information with a view to intervening at the school. Learners at the school will be counselled by professionals from government departments who are being assigned by the technical team,” he said.

 

Damages at the school include one hostel which hosts forty beds, an administration block, a computer laboratory and two teachers’ flats.

 

Police have been roped in to conduct investigations that led to the outbreak of the fire.

-TDN

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