Over 250 Benkum SHS students displaced by rainstorm

Teaching and learning at the Benkum Senior High School at Larteh in the Eastern Region was Monday suspended following Sunday evening’s rainstorm that left more than 250 students without accommodation.

Both the boys and girls dormitories had their roof ripped off, with the boys dormitory constructed by the GETFund five years ago, being the hardest hit. The school’s library and portion of the teachers’ bungalow were also affected by the rainstorm.

Students had to spend Monday trying to salvage their personal effects and other belongings from the rubble. The students were said to have threatened to boycott classes and leave for their respective homes until a new place is found for them.

Several items including their textbooks, exercise books, mattresses, and personal belongings of the students were destroyed in the incident which recorded no casualty. The displaced students have since been relocated to temporarily occupy an ICT laboratory block, which authorities say, is not even spacious enough to accommodate all the affected students. Authorities of the school are thus calling for support to restore the situation to normalcy in order to get the students back to the classroom. Meanwhile, the management of the school has commenced an assessment of the incident to determine the extent of damage but claimed that the situation is under control assuring parents to remain calm.

The Akuapem North Municipal NADMO Coordinator, Victor Doku, said the office will provide the needed assistance to affected students after the necessary assessments have been done. He appealed to the students to be calm and abandon their intention to boycott.