Over 250 pupils impacted by Dumfries and Galloway school closure

A secondary school in southern Scotland has been forced to close following damage caused by flooding.

Moffat Academy has been shut by Dumfries and Galloway Council after what has been described as "major water ingress" on both floors of the building.

The school, which is one of 17 secondary schools in the councils catchment area, has a roll of about 250 pupils.

The secondary had been closed to all year groups due to the water damage that was discovered on around 8am on Monday 27 May.

Parent and pupils have been reassured that scheduled exams for S4, S5 and S6 will run as planned on Tuesday 28 May.

It is thought that an issue arose due to a leak in a water purification machine used to make de-ionised water for experiments. This caused significant flooding affecting various rooms within the building as well as damage to ICT equipment, coursework and resources.Steven Kirkpatrick, Dumfries and Galloway Council, said: "Progress has been made with the clean up throughout today, however water still seems to be seeping through some ceilings and under some walls between classrooms.

"We are continuing to assess and carry out checks on equipment such as fire sensors to ensure they are working correctly and have not been affected by the flood water."

Moffat's nursery and primary school remain unaffected.

It is expected that the secondary school building will remain closed until Wednesday 29 May.

The news follows a weekend of heavy rainfall across southern, with the Met Office issuing warnings of severe downpours.

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