The victims of the Hoërskool Driehoek tragedy have been laid to rest at three different funerals in Vanderbijlpark in the Vaal.
Three learners were killed instantly and more than 20 others injured when a concrete walkway connecting two buildings collapsed at the school last week.
A fourth learner succumbed to injuries on Sunday.
Mourners arrived at different venues holding pink, white and purple balloons in honour of the deceased.
Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga joined some learners from schools in and around the area who were also in attendance.
“There’s no pain for a parent which goes beyond losing a child. I think it’s the worst thing to happen to any parent. So, it’s quite sad and especially at the age, she was right at the prime and when they are at their best and beautiful and innocent,” explains the minster.
Motshekga says it’s too early to blame infrastructure for the incident.
“Until we get a report, for me it was a freak accident, it’s a school which is well-built and unfortunately, I think, there were structural problems. So for me really, it’s a very unfortunate accident. It’s not the typical infrastructure challenge that we are facing, there are schools where there’s just no infrastructure. They have infrastructure but I think there were some technical problems with the structure itself,” adds Motshekga.
Meanwhile, Gauteng Education spokesperson Steve Mabona says investigations into the cause of the collapse are continuing.
“Engineers are still conducting interviews on the structure. They will be interacting with all relevant officials but we want to know what transpired and they will also assist with what is it that we need to do in terms of refurbishment, in terms of any intervention on the structure,” explains Mabona.
Arrangements have been made for learners who have lost out on the academic programme to catch up.
Mabona says tents have also been erected at the school’s sports grounds to allow learners to attend classes on Monday.
“It’s more of your camp environment, so they will be teaching but on a lower scale. What is critical is for them to reintegrate the learners into the school environment since they left schooling on Thursday – because Friday this thing happened in the morning. They did not focus on any learning, you need to reintegrate in the schooling system, which will take time,” adds Mabona.
