DEEP sorrow and grief shrouded Wolmer’s Boys’ School on Monday after a fourth-form student collapsed in class and died.

“I don’t think we’ve ever had such a situation; meaning, it’s typical for us to have students fall ill, we take them for medical attention, and we see them back in school. It’s the first that we’re having an experience where a student has been taken for medical attention and will not be back with us,” Principal Dwight Pennycooke told journalists at the school in the Corporate Area.

The principal said he was unable to give a detailed account of the school’s initial reaction to the incident, as, after receiving the call from the school nurse informing him of the situation, he had been at Medical Associates Hospital where the student was rushed.

However, he shared that his students were compassionate and empathetic and he expected that the school would be in a period of mourning for quite some time.

“I know over the next few days it’s going to be a difficult one for his peers, his teachers, and for us the administration. We’ve never had to walk through something like this, but we will, through the grace of God, and the help of the support, walk through this and ensure that we provide the necessary support to his peers as well,” said Pennycooke.

He added that, in his absence, vice-principals had been ensuring that the school remained settled, while an early dismissal gave students and staff time to “decompress and to process” what had happened.

He further noted that he could not speak to the specifics surrounding the medical emergency, but recalled seeing the school nurse’s urgent response after receiving her call.

Wolmer’s Boys’ School Principal Dwight Pennycooke speaking with journalists at the school on Monday after the sudden passing of a student.Photo: Joseph Wellington

“I saw her running. She’s heavily pregnant, and you see her running, and so I think you would appreciate that she had the sense that this is an emergency, and so she dealt with whatever the call was… in that moment. So that is all I’m aware of,” he said.

Pennycooke reiterated that the school would continue to provide necessary support to those in mourning, noting that the Ministry of Education responded to the incident, and that counsellors were immediately deployed.

“Our young men are quite sensitive, and when it comes down to empathy and compassion, I know I’m going to have to support them quite a bit over the next couple of days… We had a counselling team here earlier. We had our women’s girls’ school counsellors come over. Now we have persons from the Ministry of Education, and no doubt we will have them again for the next couple of days,” he said.

The principal’s update followed a statement released by Wolmer’s Joint Board of Management, which detailed that the student was rushed to hospital where he was later pronounced dead after he collapsed at school.

The board expressed profound sorrow for the loss of the student and further extended its condolence to his parents, relatives, friends, classmates, teachers, and all whose lives he touched.

The board also said that affected peers and staff were being provided with emotional support and asked that the privacy of the student’s family and the school community be respected at this time.

“We also urge the public to refrain from speculation or the circulation of unverified information concerning the circumstances of his passing. The Wolmer’s family stands together in grief and will continue to support the student’s loved ones in the days ahead,” the board said.