At least 9 hurt in collapse of covered court at Zamboanga City school

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines — The roof of a covered court in a remote barangay Zamboanga City that was being used as a temporary classroom collapsed Monday morning, leaving nine students injured.

School and village officials said the covered court at the Sinubong National High School in Barangay Sinubong, about 26 kilometers from the city proper, collapsed around 8:30 a.m. amid heavy downpour.

Joel San Juan Garcia, school principal, said the students were holding their English class when the roof collapsed.

"The teacher and students first heard a loud creaking sound and the students and teacher ran away for their safety," Garcia told media.

Some of the victims have been named: Michaela Martinez, Jenelyn Ebag, Shaina Alipan Radzmi Jainal and Mica Macaso—all Grade 9 students of SNHS.

The teachers said more than 50 students had been using the covered court for their classes because their classroom building had a leaky roof.

Leida Peñaflorida, a teacher at Sinubong, told local station EMedia Production that she was holding class in a separate classroom building when she heard the loud creaking and saw the covered court roof slowly collapsing.

"I rushed outside my room barefoot and shouting at the students to run away because the ceiling was falling down," Peñaflorida said.

Garcia said plastic chairs that the students had been using helped cushion the impact of the collapse.

The students, who mostly sustained contusions were rushed to the nearby Labuan District Hospital in Barangay Labuan for treatment.

City Engineer Christopher Navarro said faulty welded trusses may have contributed to the collapse but said the city will conduct a thorough investigation to find put what happened.