FOR students and teachers at Mayfield Primary and Infant School leaking classrooms were a reality long before Hurricane Melissa, but the situation worsened significantly with the passage of the storm.

Listed among the beneficiaries of the 2026 Sagicor Sigma Run, which will raise funds to donate to hurricane-affected schools across western Jamaica, acting Principal Marion White-Cuff said she is deeply grateful that the institution, located in Southfield, St Elizabeth, was selected.

White-Cuff explained that the school, which has more than 200 students, lost the roofs of three classrooms along the grades four to six blocks during the hurricane.

In another case, a concrete roof that had already been weakened by water damage suffered further damage and is breaking apart.

“We have relocated the classes to another room, which is the teacher’s lounge, and another classroom. For one of the classrooms [the roof blew off] at the back of the room, so the teacher prefers to stay in that room. For the infant department, a part of it is decked, so the decking started to fall out, and the ceiling itself is damaged for the entire infant department, so water came in, [it] got wet, and it’s loose,” the acting principal told the Jamaica Observer on a visit to the school last Wednesday.

She added that the perimeter fencing for the school was also damaged, but for security reasons they moved quickly to repair it before Sagicor came on board.

Mayfield Primary and Infant School is one of five beneficiaries of the 2026 Sagicor Sigma Corporate Run, the others being Little London High, Salt Marsh Primary, Green Pond High, and Hopewell High School. Sagicor is aiming to raise $150 million through the 5.5 kilometre run, scheduled for February 15, to help repair the hurricane-affected schools.

White-Cuff noted that National Education Trust (NET) has also conducted multiple evaluations to return the school to normalcy. Funds donated and allocated will be used to replace the damaged roofs.

The acting principal expressed thanks to Sagicor, stating that she was shocked that the company chose the institution among all the affected schools in St Elizabeth.

“The teachers, they were thankful; the board, everybody, and they expressed their thanks to Sagicor. We want to say to them [Sagicor], ‘Thanks for choosing us. It has been a privilege.’ It has been a very good initiative, and we thank them with all our hearts,” said White-Cuff, noting that a team from the school will journey to Kingston to participate in the charity run/walk event.

As she recalled the events following Hurricane Melissa she said that ancillary workers and teachers spent days clearing water and debris from the premises, determined to reopen the school as quickly as possible. White-Cuff said that in conversations with the groundsman, who remained on the compound during the hurricane, he described the experience as terrifying, recounting that water seeped in everywhere he went in search of shelter.

“The worst part of it was the water, because everywhere got wet after the roof was blown off from the grades four to six blocks. The other rooms were all filled with water. We have a multi-purpose board, and luckily it was secured in a little corner because it was in the media centre, but in there it was totally wet,” said the acting principal.

She said the computer room was the only area of the school unaffected by water damage. However, the computer in the main office was soaked during the storm and is now non-operational.

She explained that discussions with contractors revealed that the membrane installed atop the buildings to provide a watertight seal was blown away during the storm and, in some cases damaged, worsening the leakage issues the school had been grappling with long before Hurricane Melissa.

“Sometimes we just had to push the [desks] to the side, but since Hurricane Melissa we haven’t had any day rain of such that affects [the operation of] school. We have it from the afternoon to overnight, so early in the morning, the janitors would come and clean out, make sure they dry it up before the students come in. [The rain] mainly comes from the pebble dash to the side, so the water comes in at the bottom [of the wall] and then comes in,” she told the Sunday Observer.

Despite the damage, she said they opted to reopen school as quickly as possible.

“I know about the loss of learning during COVID and I didn’t want that, so I was trying to reopen the school as quickly as possible after the hurricane. We were one of the first schools that were open in the area, because we had things together. We got the generator, and we liaised with parents so that they would be able to come in, and our canteen was in full operation,” said White-Cuff.

The acting principal said students gradually resumed classes after the passage of the hurricane. The institution also accommodated 15 students from Westmoreland and St Elizabeth who temporarily relocated to live with relatives in the area.

A post-disaster assessment among students and teachers found that 24 students and one teacher suffered partial damage to their homes or roofs. In the spirit of the Christmas holiday, she said the school organised a donation drive for those affected, which was successful.

As they await further help to restore the school to complete operations, White-Cuff said the institution will continue to pivot as it places the education of students as the main priority.

“I don’t like when children are out of school, so I will do whatever I can, and work with whatever I have to make sure it doesn’t happen,” she said.

Water that seeped through cracks at Mayfield Primary and Infant School cover a section of a classroom. Photo: (Photo: Garfield Robinson)

A section of the ceiling at Mayfield Primary and Infant in Southfield, St Elizabeth, that is collapsing. (Photo: Garfield Robinson)