Army of angels comes to the rescue
24 January 2011
Spirits undampened ... Paul Zernike at Milton State School
The close-knit community of Milton would move heaven and earth for its beloved state school. And during Brisbane's flood disaster, in a way that's exactly what it did.
Once Milton State School was on high flood alert, it took only 45 minutes for a veritable army of 50 parents, students and local community members to band together and move valuable resources to higher ground.
'We were just sending out text messages to all and sundry, and running up and down the streets yelling out and asking people to help,'said principal Paul Zernike.
'Because of the remarkably quick response time, we were able to save many of our teachers'valuable teaching resources and personal items that can't ever be replaced.
'Some of these volunteers left their own homes that could have flooded just to help out their school, which is a truly overwhelming and selfless act of community spirit.'
The pre-federation Milton State School was undoubtedly among the worst-hit schools in the city of Brisbane. As a result, its 510 students plus staff have relocated to the Queensland Academy for Science, Mathematics and Technology at Toowong until the cleanup and rebuild is complete.
'The lower blocks of the school were completely inundated,'Mr Zernike said. 'Floodwaters crept up to the ceilings in some of our classrooms, which will have to be completely gutted.'
However, he said the flood would not dampen spirits at Milton State School. School would start back on time for the 2011 school year at its temporary location, and a coordinated restoration was under way almost immediately the waters receded involving Education Queensland, QBuild and many more helpers.
Looking back, Mr Zernike said he was not surprised that the local community came quickly to the school's rescue.
'It's not unusual for the Milton community – our school is a meeting place, and people see us as very much a central point or heart of the community,'he said.
'After the floods, the mud and the rubbish have all subsided and are just a powerful memory. Milton State School's community spirit will live on.'
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