Bohemia Village Voice

Where the lightning struck: pointed out by pupils (L-R) Gloria Blurton, Jodie Pfundstein, Hayden Ackerley, Charlie Mulvanny and Nick Duly

St Paul’s School, Horntye Road, has been busy over the summer repairing the damage to the electrics and phone lines following the lightning strike in July (writes Alison Day of St Paul’s). Fortunately, the lightning struck at 7.10am when only a few staff and no children were on the premises. Teachers reported that they felt the building shake and thought that the main site had been hit when sparks shot from the sockets. Other staff soon arrived to hear a constant piercing alarm and it quickly became clear that the school would have to be closed, at least for the day. Staff manned the gates letting parents know that the school would be closed and advised them to listen for further information on the local radio as the school phones lines were down.
Despite conductors on both buildings, the lightning struck the side of the Performing Arts Centre [see picture], a separate building, leaving only a dull black mark! However, it damaged all the earths, and every electrical connection had to be checked for safety. It was a very difficult time for communication due to the suddenness of the strike, phone lines being severely affected and there being no electricity. The office staff stoically answered a constant barrage of calls from worried parents who understandably wanted up-to-date information on the progress of the repairs. This put a great strain on the phone lines in and out of school with emergency calls having priority. During the four-day closure, eight electricians were employed. They continued to work over the weekend to ensure that the school could open on the following Monday. Unfortunately, the phone lines continued to be intermittent until the second week of the Autumn term, causing continued disruption to school life.