Accelerated flood recovery for Telegraph Point Public School
Release date: 25 June 2021
The severe weather event that hit NSW in late March 2021 had an especially big impact on a school in Telegraph Point, near Port Macquarie.
Telegraph Point Public School was evacuated before floods cut the school off from town. When the floodwaters receded, it was obvious the school would be closed for several months due to the extensive damage, including two buildings shifted from their footings by the strong current.
Our Asset Management Unit – North Coast (AMU) sprang into action to provide Telegraph Point’s students with a place to learn as quickly as possible.
At the nearby Hastings Secondary College – Westport Campus, the AMU team identified a building at the rear of the campus that could be easily converted into a primary school, complete with a separate entrance and play space. Generous donations from schools (both near and far) and local businesses meant the building could be completely fitted out with primary school furniture, books and toys – everything the students would need to feel completely at home.
Within 2.5 weeks of the floods, the Telegraph Point Public School students arrived by bus for their first day in their Hastings classrooms.
But work didn’t stop there. The AMU team were busy cleaning up the school grounds and getting a new temporary school ready at Telegraph Point, opening to students on 18 May 2021 – just under two months from when the storm hit.
Repair work on the school’s permanent building continues.
