2017-03-10Staff Report 2 Loide Jason Ongwediva-Some 23,581 learners from schools in Omusati Region are currently idling at home as a precautionary measure taken by 67 schools that have been flooded by the incessant heavy rains that have deluged the north of Namibia in recent weeks. Apart from Omusati Region, schools in Ohangwena are also flooded with rainwater gushing into a number of classrooms. Laban Shapange, the director of education in Omusati Region said the schools would re-open as soon as the floodwater has subsided. He said about 38 schools are partly closed, while 29 schools have been closed entirely. Shapange said most of the affected schools are surrounded by floodplains, thus learners and teachers have to wade through knee-deep water to reach the schools, which endangers the lives of both learners and teachers. “The principals are the ones that will monitor the situation at school and when the water goes down they will go to radios and announce that the school will re-open,” Shapange said. He said some schools were supposed only to close for a week, but when New Era spoke to Shapange this week no school had filed any report of the floodwaters having receded. He noted that there are 283 schools in the Omusati Region alone. Northern Namibia has received good rains over the past few weeks. According to the weather bureau, Oshikango received the highest rainfall (94.6mm), while Oshakati reported 44.6 mm in recent days. 2017-03-10Staff Report 2
