News Brief: Mailroom pipe bursts in Harnwell dorm

A pipe above the Harnwell College House mail room burst at around 8:30 p.m. yesterday, flooding the mail room, the Cafe area and the mezzanine level.

First-year MBA student and Harnwell Graduate Associate Matthias Weisheit said Facilities staff responded quickly to the incident.

"I saw water pouring from the back room and some men from Facilities drenched in the water," he said. "All the ceiling tiles had fallen down. It was like a mini waterfall."

Facilities and Harnwell staff first tried to prevent the flooding from reaching surrounding areas, Weisheit said.

"Water started flooding onto the mezzanine, and we had to move the furniture out of the way quickly," he said.

Water from the pipe reached the basement level, and staff had to vacuum up the water before dealing with the broken ceiling tiles.

Pipe bursts and subsequent flooding, along with damage to house facilities, have occurred before in the building, said Harnwell House Dean Suhnne Ahn said.

"This is not the first flood we've had since the renovations," she said. "Frankly, I'm frustrated."

Flooding could have also damaged student packages and mail boxes, Ahn said.

"Naturally, I'm concerned about the possible damage to mail and packages of my residents," she said. "We'll see in the morning."

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