A SAGRIQUA Safety Series exposé, brought to you by OHS Navigators.  SAGRIQUA safety expert Kenneth Mqadi reveals 5 shocking truths about school safety in South Africa — from fatal fire drills to the 5% compliance crisis.   1. Introduction: The Silence Before the Stampede At exactly 12:00 PM, a typical South African school is a scene of vibrant, organized chaos. It is the peak of the day: hundreds of learners are huddled in toilet queues, others are jostling in the feeding scheme line for a hot meal, and many more are scattered across the sports fields. To a parent or a teacher, it looks like a normal day of learning. To a safety expert, it is a ticking time bomb. This "normalcy" is the thin veil masking a crisis that hemorrhages through our education system, keeping experts awake at night. In an instant, a kitchen gas explosion or a short circuit in a Grade 7 classroom can transform this scene into a site of mass casualty. We are talking about 800 lives at risk and a pr...