There was a flood in Leonard Hall on Thursday afternoon, Oct. 22, after a hot water pipe broke in the seventh floor’s women’s bathroom.
The incident occurred around 12:20 p.m., causing a severe flood in the first floor lobby area. Leonard residents were surprised to find a cascade of water pouring down from the ceiling as they entered the residence hall.
Right after water started leaking, a resident went down to the front desk to inform the desk receptionist that the same thing was happening on the fourth floor’s men’s bathroom. The desk receptionist on duty, Resident Assistant Matthew Welsch, immediately called 2Fix and Resident Director Julie Eller.
Water continued to pour down until water service was turned off in order to repair the problem. Before the water was turned off, empty trash bins were placed underneath the leak, but there was a large amount of water coming down and the trash bins overflowed. Several ceiling tiles were damaged and eventually collapsed. Most of the water on the floor was vacuumed out and fans were placed in the lobby to dry the carpet.
Housing and Dining Programs, Facilities Management, Aramark and Public Safety responded to the scene. RAs taped fliers to bathroom doors and elevators, informing the students that the water was turned off and asking them to enter and exit the building through McDowell Hall. This prompted some students to go to other areas of campus while the problem was solved.
According to an e-mail Housing and Dining sent to Leonard residents, the fire alarm system and card access panel in Leonard were shut off as part of the repairs, in order to avoid electric damage. Housing and Dining asked RAs to conduct “fire walks” until the system was back up the next day, in compliance with Risk Management guidelines.
“Fire walks are continuous rounds of the building to verify safety on the floors and in the common areas,” said the e-mail. “Public Safety officers will conduct regular rounds throughout this event in order to confirm the safety of the building and all residents.”
Leonard resident Laura Harris, a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences, was told the water was off when she came back to the residence hall around 3:30 p.m.
“I got my stuff and went over to MGC,” she said.
Seventh floor resident Camila Cabrer, a sophomore in the School of Communication, was in class when the pipe broke.
“My roommate texted me ‘there’s a waterfall in Leonard,’ and I wanted to go check it out, but once I got out of class the water had been cut off and they were working on seeing what the problem was,” she said.
As of Thursday evening, repairs had been completed and water service had been restored, although the ceiling tiles that collapsed in the lobby have not been replaced and there are still fans drying the lobby’s carpet.
All bathrooms in Leonard are in order, “except for the seventh floor women’s bathroom, where cosmetic work will be done over the next several days to repair the damage,” said Sophia Z. Benedicktus, assistant director of operations, in the e-mail sent to Leonard residents.
“Girls weren’t allowed to use the bathroom until Saturday. However, we still can’t shower there until further notice,” Cabrer said.
You can reach this staff writer at rgonzalez@theeagleonline.com.
