DepEd: 86% of 779 schools inspected in 2010 have structural defects

About 86 percent of some 779 school buildings inspected by the Department of Education (DepEd) for safety in March and April last year were found to have structural defects. In a news release posted on its website on Wednesday, the DepEd said out of 779 school buildings inspected, "671 (86.1 percent) were found to have structural defects." The DepEd also said out of 685 schools inspected nationwide, "588 were found to have structural defects." According to the DepEd, there are 45,625 elementary and high schools nationwide. Of these, 752 schools (2,828 school buildings) are in Metro Manila. These include 512 elementary schools and 240 secondary schools, it said. The DepEd also said 869 schools identified as Gabaldon schools, or schools that were built many decades ago, are still being used and preserved. "From these, 89 elementary schools and 11 secondary schools have been repaired," it said. Breakdown of schools The DepEd provided a breakdown of the schools found to have structural defects by region: