Parents concerned over poor facilities at Dammam school

A number of parents of children at the International Indian School-Dammam (IISD) have voiced their concerns about unhygienic facilities and faulty AC units at the school’s two massive buildings. Frustrated with poor conditions at the school, some parents have turned to social media to air their concerns. They have posted shocking photos.
With 16,000 students and 800 teachers, the school, established in 1982, is the largest expatriate-run institution in the region. It collects around SR 3 million a month in fees, which totals up to SR 36 million every year. The school is housed in two massive buildings owned by Al-Jabreen Trading and Contracting Co., to whom the school pays SR6.5 million in rent yearly.
Hussain Sohail Ahmed, a conscientious parent and a senior project engineer whose three children currently study at the school, documented the poor conditions when he visited the girls’ section building recently. He says he and his family were shocked at what they saw.
“There was a science exhibition going on. I wanted to wash my hands in the nearby restroom. When I went in, I was appalled by the offensive stench. It was intolerable,” he wrote in an e-mail that has been circulated to thousands of parents of children who study at the school. The issue was brought to Arab News’ attention by iReport, an initiative by the newspaper to engage the public in journalism.
According to Ahmed, the main entrance was “so shocking that we thought only pictures would be able to convey the appalling conditions in great detail,” he wrote.
The pictures Ahmed sent through iReport show an electric water cooler with four faucets. “Drinking water” is written clearly on the adjacent wall. Next to the cooler is a garbage can. There is filth all around. Two downside-up mops rest against the wall. There are two rubber wipers, an open floor drain, a stick in a plastic bottle and a bucket full of cleaning chemicals.
“This is the place from where our children drink water,” he wrote. “This is disgusting.”
Apart from the filth, the basic facilities at the school are poor. The taps, toilets, lighting and air-conditioning are all far below the required standard. In many classrooms, the air conditioning is inadequate. “Sometimes, for days, AC systems do not function properly, resulting in students either sweating or feeling extremely cold,” he said.
More shockingly, the school’s two main buildings have no effective fire alarm and fire protection system, putting the lives of 16,000 students and 800 teachers at risk.
Testing and maintaining fire alarms and fire protection systems as well as conducting fire drills could easily be done during the two-month annual vacation.
Ahmed’s e-mail has gone viral on the Internet. On various Facebook pages, hundreds of students and even teachers have “liked” and agreed with Ahmed’s assessment.
Arab News approached the school authorities with the complaints and issues raised. They did not question the veracity of the appalling pictures, but insisted that it was an exception and not the norm. “We give top priority to the safety, security, health and hygiene of students,” one of the school officials said, pointing out that the cleaning and maintenance is outsourced to a contracting company. The school spends more than SR 2.5 million for cleaning and maintenance alone.
According to the school authorities, on the day the pictures were taken, janitors were working in other buildings. They were unfamiliar with the girls’ section building, so any one of them might have unknowingly left the cleaning equipment in that (drinking water) area, they stated.
Ahmed feels his e-mail has had the desired effect. “I am concerned about the children, and I am happy to note that my concerns are being given top priority.”