Adam Hartman
21 June 2011
Okombahe — A restoration committee of the Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELC) will be appointing an architect to investigate the possibility of restoring Okombahe’s 103-year-old Omkhaidani church building, of which the front wall collapsed nearly two months ago.
The five-metre-high wall on the entry side collapsed during the late night hours, bringing down the steeple and bells, as well as destroying a few pews.
A meeting was held with Bishop [Zephania] Kameeta to discuss the future of the church, with the appointment of a restoration committee. It was decided that an architect needed to evaluate the damage and see if it was possible to restore it into is former state, or if it would have to be demolished and reconstructed.
It is believed by locals that the recent rains may have played a role in weakening the old clay structure, eventually causing it to self-destruct.
“We’re not sure what to do yet. We will have to here what the architect thinks. There are some fears that it the building may have become unstable overall, so there is a possibility that it will be demolished and rebuilt, but we don’t know,” Riana /Uises, who is a member of the restoration committee, told The Namibian.
She and others were still busy removing rubble from the site recently, just with spades and wheelbarrows. The church is still being used as a place of worship though.
The National Heritage Council has also apparently been approached to declare the site as a monument, depending on its future restoration. In the village of Okombahe though, the church is considered as a monument.
It is still unknown who the architect will be that will be mandated with the task of the church’s future.
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Decision Still to Be Made About Future of Okombahe’s Collapsed Church