Following a sit-in by teachers at Uriah McPhee and Stephen Dillet primary schools over several health issues, the Ministry of Education announced yesterday that those two schools will be closed on Friday.

The Bahamas Union of Teachers (BUT) claimed the schools have mold, rodent and termite infestation, and the air-conditioning units have malfunctioned.

BUT President Belinda Wilson said teachers will not return to the classroom until those issues are resolved.

Director of Education Lionel Sands admitted the air-conditioning units malfunctioned, mold was found in Uriah McPhee and rodents were found in Stephen Dillet.

He said the ministry is working "expeditiously" to address the concerns. Sands told reporters the ministry prioritizes the health and well being of students and teachers.

In response to criticism that the ministry should have resolved the health concerns prior to the schools opening, Sands said when contractors and officials inspected the schools, those things were not discovered.

"We expect that over the weekend and the next several days that these matters will be cleared up," Sands said.

"By the end of Sunday, I will be able to say to parents whether their children should be able to come to school on Monday morning."

Sands indicated the rodent problem was prevalent in the yard surrounding Stephen Dillet, which is located on Wulff Road. Uriah McPhee is located on Kemp Road.

Sands said the Department of Environmental Health has since dealt with that problem, but the stench of dead rodents may still be present.

Andrew Coleman, assistant secretary of education, estimated the cost of repairs at Stephen Dillet alone will be in excess of $50,000.

"At Uriah, you find that the major problem was with the air-conditioning as there were two units down," Coleman said. Sands thanked parents and teachers for their patience and resolve.

"These are hard-working teachers, especially the teachers in both of these schools where you don't normally have them expressing their concerns like they have over the past few days," he said.

"There have been teachers whose patience was very long with us, especially under the conditions that we have at both of these schools."

The education director denied claims of overcrowding at the two primary schools, and said both were under capacity. Both schools have a 800 student capacity, Sands said.

He recommended the ministry consider contracting a dedicated maintenance team to be on-hand to fix frequent plumbing and air-condition issues at the schools.

Asked whether any other public school had similar concerns, Sands said, "I have been around to most of the schools over the last few days, and I have not seen where there are concerns in any of the schools where it would require students not to attend."

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