ORACABESSA Primary School Principal Winsome McFarlane Forbes is expecting full classes to resume on Monday after a fire destroyed a three-room building there on Wednesday.

On Friday classes resumed for grades three to six at the school in St Mary, with students participating in Jamaica Day activities after all face-to-face classes had been suspended in the immediate aftermath of the fire.

“The younger grades were engaged in online classes,” McFarlane Forbes told the Jamaica Observer.

Pointing to the area affected by the fire, McFarlane Forbes said a team from National Solid Waste Management Authority started clean-up activities, removing twisted zinc and charred metal desks.

She pointed out that the building which was destroyed was made of board and zinc and housed furniture, a special education class, and the physical education department.

“The loss of the items that were in the building were teacher and students’ desks, chairs, tablets, textbooks, fans, which can be estimated at a cost of over $5 million,” said McFarlane Forbes. The figure was confirmed by Julian Davis-Buckle, assistant commissioner of Jamaica Fire Brigade.

McFarlane Forbes said although the school suffered a setback with the fire, the building which was destroyed was scheduled for demolition.

“That building was one of the infrastructure which was set for demolition and a new building made of concrete would be there,” McFarlane Forbes added, although she could not say when construction will begin.

According to the principal, since the fire the school has received commitments from several agencies which have pledged to help with the construction of the new building.

“I cannot say who they are, however the Oracabessa Foundation is already on board, the [St Mary Western] Member of Parliament Robert Montague and others have already committed to assist us,” McFarlane Forbes told the Observer.

In a release on Thursday, Montague pledged his full support to the school.

“We are so sorry for this but the children, parents, teachers and staff will not be left alone in this disaster,” said Montague.

It is reported that about 11:00 pm on Wednesday a watchman and a neighbour saw flames coming from a building at the rear of the school.

An alarm was made and the fire brigade was called. When the firefighters arrived they saw the building engulfed in flames. No one was injured in the blaze and the cause has not yet been determined.