Quake risk closes South Island’s largest high school

Thursday, 21 March 2024

Burnside High School blocks I and J have been given an earthquake grade of E, meaning they’re 25 times more dangerous than a similar new building.

The South Island’s largest secondary school has closed abruptly after discovering a quarter of its teaching spaces are not safe.

An investigation has discovered that 24 classrooms are 25 times more dangerous in an earthquake than a similar new building.

Burnside High School, with a roll of about 2400, is closing on Thursday and Friday to rework classes after blocks I and J were given a Grade E earthquake rating following a seismic assessment.

Grade E represents a life-safety risk “25 times that expected for a similar new building” Burnside deputy board chairperson Chris Wallace said.

Wallace told RNZ’s Morning Report on Thursday that blocks I and J had been assessed in 2014 and were found safe to use. In 2017, new rules for dealing with earthquake-prone buildings came into effect and a recent assessment found the two blocks did not meet the new building standards.

One year level per day, except for year 9, will be forced to study from home until the end of the term.

The blocks - containing 24 classrooms - have now been closed, leaving the school without enough space until its new Pukehinau Block opens in July.

Principal Scott Haines said 24 teaching spaces amounted to nearly one-quarter of all teaching spaces, so removing them would require “significant reallocation”.

“Some spaces that are not classrooms today will be classrooms on Monday,” he told RNZ.

Principal Scott Haines says Burnside High School’s exceptional educational outcomes will not be affected by the classroom closures. (File photo)

As a result, one year level per day, except for year 9, will then be forced to study from home until the end of the term.

Next term, until July, the school day will be split with juniors coming earlier and seniors coming later.

“We appreciate that this is very short notice and will be disruptive for some families, but the school’s priority is the safety of our staff and students,” Wallace said.

“We are not prepared to take any risks around the safety of our students and staff.”

On Thursday morning, the Ministry of Education’s head of property Sam Fowler told RNZ a low new building standard (NBS) rating was “not a need for alarm” and the risk was still low.

“… in most circumstances these buildings can remain occupied while work is planned, but ultimately it is the board’s decision based on their assessment of risk, which they’ve done, and we support that decision.”

Fowler said about 40 school buildings across the country rated below 34% of NBS. “That is a key metric for determining seismic vulnerability,” he explained.

Burnside High School learnt many lessons about off site learning during covid, principal Scott Haines said.

He said the school blocks at Burnside had been rated “at around 15% NBS”.

Fowler told RNZ there would be other classrooms around the country that had low NBS ratings, but continued to be used.

“That will be down to the specific circumstances that those schools find themselves in and the specific decisions that those schools have made to continue to occupy.”

Haines said the school would work with students and families individually if problems or clashes came up.

“We have very resilient students at Burnside, and we learnt many lessons during Covid about how to manage off site and online learning.

“Parents and students can be assured that the exceptional educational outcomes that Burnside High School is renowned for will not change.

“Our reputation as one of New Zealand’s leading secondary schools is not due to our buildings, but rather our incredibly talented teaching staff.”

The Ministry of Education gave the school permission to continue using the blocks until July but supported the decision to close them.

Burnside High School will reopen on Monday with new timetables and teaching locations.