Online Reporter
Sukulwenkosi Dube-Matutu,[email protected]
About US$10,000 is needed to repair damage caused by recent rains at Bengo Secondary School in Gwanda, Matabeleland South province.
On Monday afternoon, a classroom block’s roof was blown off, damaging furniture and stationery inside. Additional damage at the school includes a broken Jojo tank fence, garden fence, water pipes and a farming project.
The heavy rains and strong winds also affected several homesteads in the area.
Gwanda District Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) focal person, Mr Awakhiwe Moyo, estimated that US$10,000 will be required to restore the damaged infrastructure.
“On 27 October 2025, at approximately 4PM, a severe hailstorm hit Bengo Secondary School, resulting in significant damage to the school’s infrastructure. The storm caused widespread destruction, affecting several classroom blocks, school facilities, and property.
“One classroom block had its roof completely blown off, affecting a nearby block. Furniture, textbooks, teachers’ files, and other teaching materials in the affected classrooms were exposed to severe rains and destroyed. The incident has resulted in three classes being left without learning space. This disruption will likely impact the learning environment and academic activities,” he said.
Mr Moyo said the Civil Protection Committee will continue to assess the situation and provide support where possible to ensure the school can recover and continue to provide quality education to its students.
He said in order to curb future incidents, there is a need for the school to put in place windbreaks. Mr Moyo said that with the rainy season approaching, all civil protection committees and disaster risk reduction structures within the district have been activated to ensure effective reporting and reaction to incidents.
He said civil protection and DRR structures have been set up at the grassroots level up to the district level.
“Our civil protection committee and disaster risk reduction committee structures have been trained and equipped with knowledge that will be crucial, especially at this time when we will be expecting rains.
This training has also cascaded down to community members. Our goal is that community members play a part in mitigating and preventing disasters. We also want to ensure timeous reporting in case of incidents,” he said.
@DubeMatutu
