Sirigu Rainstorm: Assemblyman calls on gov’t to fasten repair works on damaged school buildings

Following last week Tuesday’s rainstorm that ripped off roofs and destroyed classroom blocks of some schools in Nyangolingo, a community in the Kasena-Nankana West District of the Upper East Region, the Assemblyman for the area, Atanga Robert, is appealing to government to take serious and urgent steps in fixing the damage to enable the schools resume academic work.
He said teaching and learning in the affected schools has become difficult as a result of the destruction caused by the disaster.
Several buildings including the Nyangolingo Primary School, Junior High School and Teachers quarters had their roofs ripped off by the violent winds that sweep through Sirigu and surrounding communities last week.
The rainstorm which lasted over an hour also destroyed over sixty houses and resulted in the deaths of a security man and a five-year-old girl.
Speaking to the media during a visit to the affected areas by the District Chief Executive, the Assemblyman said the community was worried about how the schools will operate in such difficulty.
He said the destruction caused by the rainstorm has added to existing problems facing schools in the area and called on philanthropist to come to their aid.
Mr. Atanga thanked the district assembly for responding swiftly to their calls to access the extent of damage and begged the assembly to speed up efforts in addressing the difficulties.
“It’s a sad day in my area. Even though we haven’t lost a life here, we have had many of the houses destroyed by the rainstorm. As we speak, over sixty houses have had their roof blown off. The community schools- the primary, jhs and the teacher’s quarters have also had their roofs removed by the winds. But we are still thankful that it didn’t occur during school hours because it would have been more disastrous.
Now, our biggest challenge is how to get a place for the children to sit and learn. That is the main challenge. We know the assembly and NADMO can’t do much on their own so I am appealing to government and benevolent organizations and NGOs to come and help put the roof of these schools back there for the children. Government and the assembly should see this as an emergency and act fast. Just imagine how these children are going to come for classes on Monday”. He said worryingly.
Meanwhile, Albert Asoregiya, the District coordinator for the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) has assured that the area will be given relief items should the regional office respond to their report.
He indicated that a report about the incident have been sent to the regional directorate but are yet to receive a response.
It is also gathered that the Chief Executive for the Kasena-Nankana West District, Gerard Ataogye, has traveled to the Nation’s capital Accra to seek support for the affected areas.
He is said to have gone to Accra to submit reports on the disaster to the appropriate ministry for action.
Ghana | Atinkaonline.com | Senyalah Castro