Ceiling collapses at law school during lecture
A section of the ceiling of the newly refurbished Aubrey Fraser Lecture Theatre at the Norman Manley Law School in Kingston collapsed during a lecture, causing the lecturer and frightened students to run for safety.
No one was seriously injured, but students were said to be shaken by the incident.
One student who was sitting at the front of the class suffered from an asthma attack and had to be taken to the nearby University of the West Indies Hospital for treatment. Other students were seen coughing as a result of the dust that was circulating in the room from the rubble.
A student, who asked that her name be withheld, said that while the lecturer was giving notes ‘a small sound’ could be heard, and in a few minutes the ceiling came crashing down, with the lights hanging by wires.
“It was very frightening, I thought that I was going to die, so I just grabbed my things and ran from the classroom,” said another law student.
Another student said she was thankful that the incident did not happen during one of the law school’s weekly mock trial, as the section of the ceiling that collapsed fell on top of the area that the judge would have been seated.
Classes were suspended for the rest of the day yesterday and it was unclear last night if there would be a resumption today.