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By Kimone Witter
It is suspected that an electrical short circuit led to a fire which caused an estimated $50 million in damage at Leeds Primary and Infant School in St. Elizabeth on Sunday night.
The fire gutted the principal's office, staffroom, a classroom and the library.
The school is also without electricity.
Superintendent Kimar Brooks, Divisional Commander for the St. Elizabeth Fire Department, said the Santa Cruz Fire Station responded to the blaze which started sometime after 11 p.m. and had engulfed the eastern wing of the institution.
"We quickly got into operation utilising two medium-sized jets and within 10 minutes, the fire was confined to a specific area of the eastern wing. After another hour into operation, the fire was fully extinguished," he recounted.
He said the cause of the fire is being investigated.
As a result of the damage, classes will be conducted virtually over the next few weeks, except for Grade Six students preparing to sit their remaining Primary Exit Profile (PEP) examinations, who will be accommodated at the school.
When Radio Jamaica News spoke with principal Christine Dawkins Beadle on Monday morning, she expressed concern for the PEP students and the loss of crucial documents.
"This is really a big, big set back for us. PEP is next week. All our documents are destroyed, the staffroom, the office where everything, all the documents are kept, the library which was just renovated. School is basically shut down because the electricity is gone. And as you can see, the classrooms are very dark," she bemoaned.
Lamenting the "unfortunate" incident, Mrs. Dawkins Beadle said the school had been experiencing electrical problems for some time, which led to frequent visits from the electrician.
Member of Parliament for St. Elizabeth North Eastern, Delroy Slowley, in whose constituency the school is located, said the Ministry of Education has promised to utilise Emergency Procurement to speed up the start of repair work at Leeds Primary and Infant school.
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