Students, faculty and maintenance workers received an unpleasant welcome back to campus yesterday, when Harnwell College House, Spruce College House and Solomon Laboratories of Experimental Psychology all experienced floods. A fourth flood was reported in Hayden Hall.
The floods were caused by bursting pipes or radiators and were generally contained soon after being discovered.
During the break, while most students were away from campus, the heat in the buildings was turned down. With the return of residents and faculty, the heating usage has risen back to normal standards. However, severe winter weather and the long recess in usage proved to be a disruptive combination.
"If they kept the heat on around 60 [degrees] instead of turning it down, you wouldn't have this problem," Housekeeping staff member Tim Bolton said. "Otherwise, this will happen all the time."
Harnwell College House was flooded at approximately 1:30 p.m., but was "limited in scope," affecting the west wing of the building, according to Harnwell Faculty Master David Brownlee. The flood, which was contained within the hour, nevertheless spread from the fourth floor down to the lobby.
College junior Karen Jablonski, in whose suite the flood originated, had a different take. "It was a disaster. There was water everywhere. The boiler looks like it exploded," she said.
College senior Robbi Sikka, a resident adviser in Harnwell, also described the situation negatively. The "fourth floor was pretty miserable," he said.
Elevators were properly functioning and students whose rooms were not affected were not evacuated. But hallways on the west wing were being mopped by RAs, graduate associates, residents and maintenance people, who promptly responded to the alarm, Brownlee said.
The flood at Thomas Penn in Spruce College House, which began sometime between 1:45 p.m. and 2 p.m., only affected two rooms, causing minor floor and property damage. The fire alarm was set off by the steam, but there was no actual fire, Bolton said.
The flood in Solomon Laboratories originated in the penthouse and spread to all the floors below, according to maintenance workers involved.
Bolton also said there was a flood in Hayden Hall, but this information could not be confirmed because the building remained locked in the afternoon.
