All students and staff members of a secondary school in Repentigny, in Lanaudière, were evacuated from the building on Tuesday morning due to the appearance of certain signs of structural failure, and classes will be suspended again on Wednesday.
The Affluents School Services Center (CSSDA) reports that when the anomalies were observed at the Félix-Leclerc school, located on Philippe-Picard Boulevard, the management called the Fire Department of the City of Repentigny. Following the inspection by firefighters, a general evacuation was ordered and all students and staff were gathered at the Complexe sportif Gilles-Tremblay.
At the end of the day on Tuesday, the CSSDA indicated that experts from an external engineering firm had inspected the structural elements in question. “It is a column that would have collapsed by about one centimeter and which would have caused the cracks that were observed on some walls of the school”, can we read on the site of the School Services Center.
The management affirms that, according to the experts, the state of the building is safe, and that the pupils and the personnel can return to the school as of Wednesday in complete safety.
However, in order to carry out a more complete examination, the courses will be suspended for the day of Wednesday, as well as certain activities, such as ski outings.
“Given certain interventions already carried out on the school building in recent years and in order to obtain the opinion of a second external firm, the CSSDA has requested an additional analysis which will make it possible to draw a complete portrait of the situation,” they say.
“In order to allow the firm to carry out the required verifications, classes will therefore be suspended for the day of tomorrow, Wednesday January 11. Following this second inspection, an email will be sent to parents at the end of the day on Wednesday to inform them of the status of the situation. »
Pupils who came to school on foot on Tuesday were able to leave for home and those using bus services were transported from 9:30 a.m. Parents who wished could pick up their child.