Exams disrupted by electrical fault

Pupils due to sit a later examination were re-located to an alternative exam hall at the Foyle and Londonderry Junior School on the Northland Road. And pupils due to sit exams at the old school yesterday were told to attend Northland Road instead.

William Lynn, teacher-in-charge of health and safety at the school said the evacuation was precautionary but unavoidable as smoke was coming from a switch-room beneath the exam hall.

"There seemed to be an overload in the switch room, which was directly underneath the exam hall," said Mr Lynn. "There was never any danger but we had no choice but to evacuate."

The fault was detected at approximately 10.30am on Monday as a Year 13 English Literature examination drew to a close.

It resulted in the school's heating, electricity and telecommunications being out for a period on Monday afternoon.

Vice-Principal Pat Carson said the school will now prepare a report for the examing body, the Council for the Curriculum

Examinations and Assessment (CCEA), and will ask for special consideration to be given to the pupils affected.

"We will write a report seeking special consideration for the pupils affected," said Mr Carson. "CCEA have their own considerations to deal with. We are not privy to that."

Mr Carson said an officer of the CCEA happened to be visiting the school at the time of the fault and witnessed the disruption.

"Just by chance a guy from CCEA was up at the school when it happened so they are aware of exactly what happened," he said.

He also thanked Ulsterbus for stepping in at short notice to provide transport for the pupils evacuated from the senior school.

CCEA has advised the school that they can apply for special consideration for those pupils whose examination was interrupted by the incident.

A spokesperson for the board said: "This procedure exists to ensure that pupils affected by such incidents are not disadvantaged.

"The process of applying special consideration is agreed by the Joint Council for Qualifications and the qualifications regulators in England, Wales and NI."