FIVE hundred and ninety-one students will not attend school for the rest of the week after their classrooms were burnt to the ground early yesterday.
Students of Lautoka Muslim Primary School arrived at their school to discover soot and ashes where their classrooms once stood.
School manager Shaukat Ali said they had informed the students classes would resume next week after temporary tent classrooms were set up.
Mr Ali said the cause of the blaze remained undetermined; he also could not confirm the cost of damage.
He said all efforts were being made to put up the tents for the sake of the students who would be taking annual exams in two weeks.
Yesterday an Education Ministry statement said 14 classrooms, a toilet block, a storeroom and the kindergarten classroom were destroyed.
The ministry will await a report from Primary Education director Dr Brij Lal before deciding on rebuilding the school.
The statement said "luckily no one was hurt in the fire". NFA corporate affairs officer Mileta Ting said they received a call at 1.25am and upon arriving found there was no water in the hydrant located 50 metres from the school.
Water Department spokesman Maika Nagalu said the firefighters were required to inform the department before using the hydrants.
"We received a call from the NFA at around 1.30 early this morning and our workmen managed to accompany the firemen to the school. Our workmen showed them the hydrant from which there was a high pressure line to connect their hose but they did not want to listen to our workmen," said Mr Nagalu.
He explained the nearest hydrant did not have enough water pressure to ensure a strong water flow through the hose that would dose the flames out which is why they had advised the firefighters on which hydrant to use.
"Water engineers set different water pressures to suit different areas," he said.
Fifteen rooms were destroyed in the fire of which 11 were classrooms and, two prayer rooms, a vernacular and store room.
NFA acting chief fire officer Tupou Saubulinayau called for all schools, particularly those with wooden structures, to have their premises inspected by the NFA for compliance measures.
