More than 1 300 pupils at Caprivi Senior Secondary School in the Zambezi region were sent home on Monday to allow education authorities to fix an overflowing sewage problem.
The school will remain closed for two days while the problem is being addressed.
The school grounds have been flooded by overflowing sewage since last week due to a blockage in the sewage manholes.
As a result, the recurring sewage problems are posing a health hazard to both pupils and school staff.
Katima Mulilo circuit inspector Rosco Lukubwe, during a press conference on Monday, said the Ministry of Works and Transport and the Katima Mulilo Town Council technical staff have been deployed to fix the blockage.
“Furthermore, if there are some issues that would require procurement, then we will approach the regional council for an emergency procurement,” he said.
“If the situation will not be fixed within the stipulated two days, then we will see what further measures will be taken.”
He appealed to parents to arrange transportation for their children living in the hostel.
Education waste inspector Likukela Matongo said a blockage between the last two manholes, which occurred last Thursday, has been identified, adding that technical teams have been working on it since.
He said the blockage was caused by sanitary pads, rocks, and pieces of mattresses.
“The technicians have to go into the benchmarks to remove all the waste that has accumulated in the pipelines of the two manholes,” he said.
“An intermediate solution is to install a pump station at the last manhole to pump effluent from that manhole to the town council’s manhole. If such a blockage is experienced, then the pump station will pump sewage to the town council manhole,” Matongo said.
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