Orewa College

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Orewa College is a state coeducational combined intermediate and secondary school located in Orewa, on the Hibiscus Coast north of Auckland, New Zealand. A total of students from Years 7 to 13 (ages 10 to 18) attend the school as ofHistoryThe school opened in 1956 as Orewa District High School, a combined primary and secondary school. In 1974, the primary school was split off and the school became Orewa College. Originally Year 9 to 13 only, Year 7 and 8 were added in 2005.2009 boiler explosionOn 24 June 2009, one of the school's coal-fired central heating boilers exploded while maintenance on the heating system was being carried out. The explosion blew the roof off the boiler house and shattered windows across the school. School caretaker Richard Nel received burns to 90 percent of his body and later died of his injuries in hospital. A contractor was also critically injured, receiving severe head injuries and burns to the abdomen and legs, but survived the accident.The school's board of trustees was subsequently charged under the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992. They pleaded guilty against all charges at the court-case in April 2010, and were subsequently ordered to pay reparation and court costs totalling nearly $137,000.International StudentsInternational students make up for around 20% of the school roll.Germany and Japan have ongoing exchange programmes with the college - students stay from 3 months to 3 years.Other international students are immigrants to New Zealand and their high volume reflects that of the Northern Auckland population of high foreign immigrants, mostly from Asian countries.