Published: June 26, 2026
ZORZOR, Lofa County — More than 150 children squeezed Tuesday into a dilapidated mud hut at Borkeza Junction, writing exams on their laps with no chairs, no blackboard and no textbooks in sight. It was the same structure their community abandoned years ago when it finally built a real school. Three days earlier, that school burned to the ground.
Fire swept through the building late Friday, destroying the only six-classroom structure serving lower elementary pupils between Borkeza Junction and Gumbu. Eyewitnesses say students, most under 12, had stored charcoal in an empty classroom for a class project and did not realize live coals remained when they left. By the time anyone noticed, the flames had consumed the building, its offices, textbooks, chairs, blackboards, documents, and sports equipment.
The school took nearly four years to complete, built first with community labor and later supported by the Swedish government and other philanthropists. For decades before it stood, children here sat in a mud structure or walked 30 to 45 minutes to Zelemai, Borkeza, or Fissebu, a journey parents say was dangerous for girls. Now it is gone, days before sixth-period exams.
With exams underway and no replacement classroom, students returned Monday to the old makeshift hut, which has no desks, blackboards, or teaching materials.
“We haven’t gotten anywhere to go for our exam, so we came back to our old school building,” said Jerry Weedor, a student leader.
Teacher Crayton Weedor said instruction has stalled. “Nowhere to start from right now as the six-period exam approaches. The loss will set back the children’s learning unless help comes quickly,” he said.
For parents, the fire took more than property. It took the safety that the school had given their children.
“This school was a great help for us; our children never had to leave here,” said Forkpa Tarnue, an elder who helped build it by hand. “The things we passed through for this school to be built, if today we can see this school burn, it’s really sore in my flesh.”
Parent Kebeh Yengbeh fears for her daughters, saying girls would rather walk hours to distant schools than stay in the hut in its current condition. “The incident would negatively impact her kids, mostly girls,” she said.
As exam papers are filled on laps and floors, the community is appealing for help. Parents and the student council are calling on the government through the Ministry of Education, along with humanitarian organizations and educational partners, to intervene urgently.
“We are really asking the government, people with a good heart, to help us because it’s difficult for us,” Tarnue said.
“We are calling on our big people and others who get the hand to please help us because it’s not easy on us,” said Jerry B. Weedor, president of the student council.
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