In the village of Irgeli in the Almaty Region, the school year began in a building where renovations were still incomplete: students sat at their desks while finishing work continued nearby, with dust and the smell of paint filling the air. Eight schoolchildren fell ill and an ambulance was called for them; many coughed and complained of headaches and nausea, according to infohub.kz.
According to parents, renovation work in the school's old building began in late July. Classes started, but the repairs could not be completed. Parents claim that the smell of paint and dust caused an allergic reaction in the students.
Zhamilya Imanbekova's child is in the fourth grade. A few days after classes began, he developed a cough. The boy had previously been diagnosed with asthma, so his mother immediately had tests done and found that some indicators were significantly above normal.
"My child is allergic to dust. It turns out he was suffocating because of it. When I found out, I rushed to the doctors. The doctors confirmed it, saying you have an allergic cough, the child is suffocating, and there's shortness of breath. Right now, he is breathing on a machine," the woman said.
Other students also complained of feeling unwell. According to parents, on one of the days an ambulance was called for eight schoolchildren at once. In addition, it turned out that due to a shortage of classrooms, children are now studying in three shifts, and lesson duration has been cut to 30 minutes.
"She said she was dizzy, nauseous, had headaches, and a general feeling of weakness. The child is still in the hospital," said parent Aiman Tokusheva.
Parents claim that classes in the old building continued until yesterday. And when families began raising the alarm and calling the relevant authorities, the building was closed. However, the school principal disagrees. According to her, the building has not been used for classes since the beginning of September, and 10th and 11th grade students have been transferred to online learning.
"On September 11, eight students felt unwell, after which an ambulance was called. Yesterday, September 14, an ambulance also came to the school. Today, seven of these children came to classes, and their condition is satisfactory. The parents themselves refused hospitalization," said Gulzhakhan Kenizbayeva, principal of the L.N. Tolstoy School, giving her version of events.
The school principal assured that the repairs will be completed by the end of this month. In October, students will be able to return to their usual class schedule.