HOMECOMING: Yenda Public School students Alex Terrazas, 6, Thomas Scott, 7, Josh DeRossi, 12, and Lilly Ropiha, 11, celebrate moving back into their school after the floods with an end-of-term wacky Wednesday.
HOMECOMING: Yenda Public School students Alex Terrazas, 6, Thomas Scott, 7, Josh DeRossi, 12, and Lilly Ropiha, 11, celebrate moving back into their school after the floods with an end-of-term wacky Wednesday.
YENDA Public School students are celebrating after being allowed back into their flood-damaged school on Monday.
It has been 15 weeks since they got the order to evacuate and had to make do with a temporary home at the old Kalinda site in Griffith while repairs were carried out.
Principal Derek Noffke said students were happy to be back in familiar surrounds.
“We moved back in on Monday and the kids were really pleased to be back,” he said.
“They have lots more open spaces. Many have been here for years, they have grown up here.
“There are still a few things to be done, the hall flooring is still under construction and the canteen needs some work, but a lot of that work will be carried out over the holidays.”
Mr Noffke said plans were now under way for a special thank you assembly and ceremony to be held at the school on Monday, July 30 .
“We want to thank all of the volunteers and the wider community who supported us in our temporary school,” he said.
“It will be a ceremony to recognise those people. From the labour down to financial support to restock our resources we are grateful and appreciated it all.
“At the moment we still have about 30 students still living in town and a bus is currently transporting them from Griffith to Yenda. That will continue until the last resident goes home.
“With the school and houses flooded, they have been through a tough time but the department has offered counselling support which has been fantastic.”
