Months of bus rides and sharing space in other schools are almost at an end as Westmount elementary students have been given a date for when their school’s doors will reopen.
Repairs will be complete and the children back in their respective classrooms no later than April 30, and hopefully sooner, said Jelena Hansen, chair of Westmount’s Parent Advisory Council.
“We’re all hopeful that it’s going to be after spring break or after Easter right there at the beginning of April. That would be really nice,” she said.
Hansen and the Westmount community feared the worst when RCMP and fire crews were dispatched to the elementary school in the early morning hours of Oct. 26. Firefighters quickly extinguished the flames, but damage to the roof and library below led to the school’s then indefinite closure.
In early November, it was revealed that asbestos was found in the ceiling, which delayed repairs and the reopening even longer as parts of the school were sectioned off for testing.
“I think all of us were mentally prepared for June or not getting back this year,” Hansen said of the doors reopening. “You just never know with asbestos, right?”
While the testing was done and repairs eventually got underway, Westmount children were transferred to temporary schools.
Five classes of kindergarten to Grade 3 are at Kay Bingham, three classes of Grade 3 and 4 students attend Parkcrest, and three classes learn at George Hilliard.
Hansen said the parents and administrators at all the schools, hers included, have given 100 percent to ensure the children had a good experience and felt welcome at their temporary schools.
As a result, the kids have taken the experience in stride.
“For the kids, it’s been pretty seamless and they’ve been enjoying themselves,” she said.
The Kamloops-Thompson School District contributed $10,000 to Westmount so the students can enjoy some extra physical education, said Hansen.
“At the schools [Westmount students] are at, they don’t have full gym access because now you’re sharing the gym with a school that already has a gym rotation, so they’ve been lacking that a little bit,” she said.
The money SD73 provided allowed Westmount students to partake in extra field trips to a climbing gym, Apex Adventure Park, the Kamloops Soccer Dome and the new skating rink in Riverside Park to make up for the lack of gym time.
School PACS have also included the kids in popcorn days and school dances, which has been most appreciated, Hansen said.
“The kids have had such good support. I think they’ve just been enjoying themselves,” she said. “For a bad situation, it has really gone so smoothly.”
Contractors are now ensuring the school is completely clean of any smoke damage and ready for the students to return. Meanwhile, an investigation into the Oct. 26 blaze, which is believed to be a work of arson, is ongoing.
Anyone with information related to the incident is asked to contact the Kamloops RCMP Detachment at 250-828-3000, quoting file number 2025-35751.