Disdikbud: Hundreds of School Buildings Damaged by Floods in East Aceh

BANDA ACEH - The Education and Culture Office (Disdikbud) of East Aceh Regency stated that hundreds of school buildings of various levels in the district were damaged by a massive flood.

The Acting Head of the East Aceh Education and Culture Service, Bustami, in East Aceh, Saturday, said that based on provisional data, the total number of schools affected by the flood reached 319 units.

"The provisional data collected, the schools that suffered damage due to flooding consisted of 213 elementary schools and 56 middle schools," said Bustami.

He explained that the level of damage to school buildings varied, ranging from minor to severe. The most common damage found included classrooms submerged in mud.

In addition, the ceiling and wall damage were damaged, the school floor was eroded by water, and supporting facilities such as tables, chairs, textbooks, and laboratory equipment could not be used.

"A number of schools also suffered damage to sanitation facilities, electrical networks, and school fences due to the heavy flow of flood waters. This condition makes some schools unable to return to normal learning and teaching," he said.

Bustami said the flood disaster also caused educational activities to stop in several affected areas. Many students were forced to study from home or were temporarily dismissed because the school was not yet usable.

"The safety of students and educators is a priority. For schools that have suffered severe damage, we have not allowed face-to-face learning until the conditions are completely safe," he said.

He said that his party is currently still mapping and verifying the field to ensure the level of damage in detail. This data will later become the basis for proposing rehabilitation and repair assistance for school buildings.

In addition to physical building repairs, Bustami also highlighted the need for support for emergency learning facilities. Several schools need emergency tents or temporary classrooms so that students can continue to attend learning activities even though the school building is damaged.

"We hope that there will be support from various parties, both government, private, and social institutions, to help the recovery of the education sector after this flood," said Bustami.

Meanwhile, the Head of the East Aceh Education Office (Kacabdisdik) Rahmatsah Putra revealed that the school buildings under the authority of the East Aceh Education Office Branch were 40 units.

"The number of school buildings affected by the category of heavy damage is seven units, 19 units are in a medium state of damage, and nine units are in a mild state of damage," he said.

He said that the schools affected by the disaster consisted of two extraordinary schools (SLB), 31 high schools (SMA), and seven vocational high schools (SMK).

In addition to school buildings, flooding also caused damage to supporting facilities and infrastructure for teaching and learning activities. Thousands of school furniture and equipment cannot be used because they are submerged in water and mud.

"Tables, chairs, cabinets, to multimedia devices such as computers and projectors are damaged due to being submerged in the flood. This is certainly a big obstacle for schools to return to normal learning," said Rahmatsah Putra.