In mountain brgys, classes continue despite “unsafe” schools

CEBU, Philippines - Two public schools in the mountain barangays of Cebu City are still operating despite the advice of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-7 seven years ago to relocate due to susceptibility to landslide.

Busay Elementary School in Barangay Busay and Dr. Emilio Osmeña Sr. Integrated School in Barangay Buot have been identified by DENR-7’S Mines and Geosciences Bureau as landslide-prone areas based on the “Geohazard Investigation” conducted years back.

Last year, MGB-7 also conducted a Rapid Field Assessment in Cebu and identified barangays Busay and Buot among the 19 barangays with “high” susceptibility to landslides.

As defined by MGB, high rating is characterized by presence of active and/or recent landslides, presence of numerous and large tension cracks that would directly affect the community, areas with drainage systems that are prone to landslides and steep slopes.

In an August 3, 2007 report, MGB senior geologist Maria Elena Lupo advised local officials “to scout for a safer site for the relocation of the schools affected by landslide.” MGB-7 will assist in the assessment of the relocation site.

Ester Cubero, head of the Local School Board, said yesterday that the city has been scouting for a “safer site” but failed to find a “suitable and safe” one.

“Kaniadto pa naglisod na gyod pangita og relocation sites,” Cubero said.

Likewise, the school, together with Busay barangay officials and the Department of Education, looked for a new site but failed because the identified suitable areas were privately owned.

Cubero told The FREEMAN that an area near Chateau de Busay has been considered but it was “not ideal” for a school campus because it is a narrow site.

Presently, some 530 students of Busay ES are attending classes in tents since one of their buildings was abandoned following last year’s powerful earthquake, said Cubero. The campus sits near a cliff on a city government-owned lot.

Meanwhile, classes at Dr. Emilio Osmeña Sr. Integrated School have not been interrupted yet. 

Since classes have already started, MGB advised school officials “to be extra vigilant for the time being while the schools are not yet relocated and while classes are still being held in the areas.”

As a precautionary measure, MGB also advised that classes should be dismissed earlier especially in times of heavy rain in “anticipation of any further slope failure”.

Acting Mayor Edgardo Labella, together with personnel from the Office of the Building Official and Mayor Michael Rama’s executive assistant Jose Daluz III, will be inspecting the two schools today.

“It’s really dangerous to the lives of our students. Of course we really have to abandon the buildings and put up makeshift classrooms where they are safe,” Labella told reporters yesterday. — /NSA (FREEMAN)