Ivagalane population isolated by collapsed bridge, students cut off from school – Watch

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Ivagalane population isolated by collapsed bridge, students cut off from school – Watch

2:01 CAT | 05 Mar 2020

Photo: Miramar

Nearly 500 primary school students are missing class in Quelimane as a result of a bridge over the Chipaca River connecting the Ivagalane neighbourhood to the city collapsing.

The state of the bridge can be seen on the video report below. It collapsed while rehabilitation work was underway, but the strength of the tides at the end of last week washed the metal structure away, seriously constraining connections.

Maria Domingos lives in Ivagalane and says that since the bridge collapsed, residents have been crossing the Chipaca at enormous risk to their lives, a situation even worse when the tide is high.

In some communities, women in the latter days of pregnancy have started to leave their homes and head to the city, fearing the worst when the day to give birth arrives.

The Director of the Ivagalane Primary School says that work in Grades 1 and 2 is practically at a standstill because of conditions, and especially because most of the students live over the bridge in the Sangaliveira neighbourhood.

Children this age missing school could drop out altogether if the bridge is not replaced soon, the educationalist said.

The situation in the Ivagalane neighbourhood is not unique. Secondary school students attending night classes in Sangaliveira often ask to stay over in homes that side of the river for fear of crossing the bridge at night.

The feeling is that there is an urgent need for the government to intervene before the first death is reported.