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NEWS
| October 10, 2003
facilities
Lipscomb residents left waterless
after pipe bust
Water line construction for Kalpana
Chawla residence hall led to the difficulty.
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| The Shorthorn: Andrew Campbell |
| Lipscomb Hall resident Michael Burke
is unhappy about the residence hall being without water
for 24 hours. The criminal justice sophomore said on Thursday
that he hadn’t taken a shower in two days after
a water pipe and valve burst during construction on the
Kalpana Chawla residence hall. |
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By Tessa
Burkett
Contributor to The Shorthorn
Lipscomb Hall residents were without running water for about 24
hours after city workers broke the building’s main water line
Wednesday.
Most residents were unable to use any plumbing — including
showers, toilets and sinks — until 3:30 p.m. Thursday when
workers finished repairs. The break occurred during construction
on water lines for the Kalpana Chawla residence hall.
Don Lange, Physical Plant assistant director, said the pipeline
likely doesn’t appear on the city’s design plans. The
line was so old, he said, that it was not recorded on maps because
of rapid growth in the area. City officials could not be reached
for comment.
Lange said the valve stem — the part of the pipe that regulates
water flow — also broke while city construction workers rushed
to fix the pipe.
“My suitemate knocked on the door last night saying ‘Help!’
” nursing freshman Ashley Ferrell said. “When I went
to go see what was happening, water was spurting everywhere out
of the toilet pipe. Her boyfriend and another guy were holding the
pipe together until the maintenance man came.”
Residents dealt with the situation in different ways. Some, like
broadcasting freshman Yvette Davis, showered at a friend’s
house. Other students stayed and stuck it out.
“We’re not showering. Our bathrooms smell like Port-a-Potties
because no one can flush,” undeclared freshman Crystal Marshall
said early in the afternoon.
Later that afternoon, the building’s restrooms were cleaned
but some residents said they were not appeased.
Lange said city workers installed a temporary line Wednesday evening
in an effort to restore some service to the building. It yielded
only a low-pressure trickle of brown water that didn’t reach
all the residents.
“This morning, the water was brown when we turned on the sink
to try to brush our teeth,” Marshall said.
The valve stem complication also caused smaller valves in Lipscomb
Hall bathrooms to break.
Dirty water spewed from pipes leading to toilets and sinks and across
the carpeting in suites and hallways. Leaks from the upper levels
seeped through the floor and down the walls to rooms below.
Lange said maintenance personnel moved quickly to clean up the standing
water and address repair issues, but residents said there are some
problems that are yet to be resolved.
“They haven’t fixed the pipe yet,” Ferrell said.
“They said just not to use it.”
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