Some 1,600 gallons of water vanished from two tanks at St Andrew Primary School over the weekend, although the Ministry of Education provides the school with round-the-clock watchmen.

The water was trucked to the school last Thursday, after the principal, Beverley Haase, suspended classes for all students, except those preparing for the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT).

When contacted yesterday, Haase could not explain how the water was removed from the tanks, but said she was first alerted to it when the school chef was about to start preparing meals for the students.

"When the cook turned on the pipes, no water," Haase lamented. She said subsequent checks revealed that the tanks were empty.

"There was no need (for us) to use the water on Friday. So we left there with at least two full tanks," she added. Haase said students were now being urged to take their own water to school. Declining water levels at the Hermitage Dam and the Mona Reservoir have forced the National Water Commission to institute water lock-offs throughout Kingston and St Andrew.