The Tribune

By MORGAN ADDERLEY

Tribune Staff Reporter

madderley@tribunemedia.net

THE registration of 10,000 displaced students from Abaco and Grand Bahama will continue until mid-October, National Emergency Management Agency spokesperson Carl Smith said Friday.

To manage this “large volume”, Mr Smith noted the Ministry of Education is busing students in shelters to the National Stadium and underscored registration time slots are being scheduled in advance.

Mr Smith underscored evacuees who are not staying in shelters must call the Ministry of Education to schedule a registration time.

His remarks came one day after the first school registration exercise was held.

This event was marked by extreme frustration and confusion by parents and guardians who complained of long wait times and a lack of transparency regarding when the process would finally be complete and their students enrolled in a local school.

For many parents, school placement is synonymous with providing children with a sense of normalcy in the aftermath of the traumatising experience of surviving a devastating hurricane and having to relocate to New Providence.

Hurricane Dorian, a Category 5 hurricane, made landfall over Abaco and Grand Bahama on September 1 and 2, leaving unprecedented destruction in its wake.

“The government is committed to getting displaced students back into school as quickly as possible,” Mr Smith said at a NEMA press conference held on Friday.

“Yesterday (Thursday), the Ministry of Education began the vital process of registering the 10,00 students affected by Dorian into these schools,” he continued. "The Ministry of Education is busing students in shelters to the national stadium for the registration to take place.

"To manage the large volume, registration time slots have been scheduled in advance and persons who have been affected but are not in shelters should contact the Ministry of Education to get an appointment time so that their registration can take place.

"This is very important because the registration involves capturing information on immunization and medical checks,” he said.

“That is why we are scheduling the registration process, so that people are not waiting on lines long periods of time and getting frustrated..

"As I indicated, if you’re not in a shelter but need to register a student, please call the Ministry of Education to schedule the time of registration and the number is available on NEMA's webpage and Facebook.

"This registration process will continue until mid-October. We have UNICEF here today with us who are partnering with the Ministry of Education to get our kids back in school as quickly as possible.”

The Tribune visited the National Stadium on Thursday and witnessed the scores of parents, guardians, and children attempting to be registered.

Eugene Ferguson Sr, an Abaco resident, was there attempting to register to his 18-year-old son, Eugene Jr, who he affectionately referred to as “Geno”.

Geno was days away from beginning his senior year at Patrick J. Bethel High School in Abaco when the monster storm hit.

When asked how long he has been in New Providence, the elder Mr Ferguson replied: “I came in three days after the hurricane. I’m losing sense of the days now because nothing is normal. I think I came in on Monday of this week.

"Luckily, a high school friend of mine and his wife, they decided to take us in – me and my son. I’m grateful to them.

"As far as the (registration) process here is concerned, I know that there is a lot of people to deal with and nothing is ever perfect. I’m prepared to just wait it out and wait my turn. You find a lot of people complaining, complaining about this and complaining about that, but whatever assistance they can give, I appreciate it.”

He added his son was excited to graduate with his senior class in Abaco, but understands their current predicament.

“(My son) doesn’t want to be interviewed because he got some trauma,” Mr Ferguson said. "He’s one of them who decided to go and look at the damages in Marsh Harbour and...he saw like ten body bags with bodies in them and he told me he saw this guy who got trapped in his car holding the steering wheel and apparently drowned right there.

"It’s affecting him on some level because he came home this evening and eighteen-year-olds don’t go to bed six o’clock in the evening, (but) he went straight to bed. He’s going to need some counselling.”

Mr Ferguson added he believes returning to school and being around students his age will also help his son.

"I know he needs counseling, but we’ll get through this,” Mr Ferguson said.