Trinity Hall is the largest freshman dorm. Photo credit: Annie Z. Yu.
A flood late Monday night in Trinity Hall forced emergency evacuation of First and Second South, throwing a bump into already-hectic schedules as finals draw near. The students, all male freshmen, have been relocated to different housing areas around campus and will not be able to return until after winter break.
“I was just in my room, I heard the fire alarm go off, and instead of the usual just people kind of groaning and walking off, people were like running and yelling,” said freshmen cinematic arts major Andrew Martin, a Trinity Second South resident. “Someone went outside and there were geysers coming out of the ceiling. And we put as many electronics on top of our beds, out of the way of the water, and we left.”
The flood started around 11:25 p.m. after a student accidentally hit a golf ball into a pipe, causing it to burst, according to several Trinity residents. The broken pipe apparently triggered the sprinkler system. Specific details are unclear, and Trinity Residence Director Rachel Lincoln said she could not speak to any details. She also declined to give an exact number of residents living in those two halls. Resident advisors were instructed not to talk about details.
“There was just a fire hose of water shooting out of the ceiling,” Martin said.
At first, all Trinity residents were evacuated, according to freshman English major and First South resident Eliot Reasoner. Later, most were let back in – all but the First and Second South residents.
“I was just Facetiming my family, and then the fire alarm went off,” Reasoner said. “I thought it was just a normal drill, so I didn’t take anything. I just went outside and thought it would be over in five minutes. It ended up being like an hour.”
Freshman communication studies major Malachi Diaz, a First South resident, was at the library working on homework Monday night when he received a text from his resident advisor that they would not be allowed back into their rooms that night.
“At first I thought it was a joke, because how could we have to find somewhere else to sleep? Like that’s our room,” Diaz said. “It was kind of shocking.”
Diaz spent the night at a friend’s mod, while several other students found shelter on the floors of friends’ dorm rooms or even the homes of relatives in the area. Martin and several of his friends spent the night in the prayer chapel next to Smith Hall.
By Tuesday mid-morning, students were allowed to return to their rooms with an escort in singles or pairs to get any essentials, such as materials for classes that day.
Reasoner said he was worried all night because he left his laptop and phone on the floor next to his bed, which is also on the floor.
“But I guess Campus Safety, they had gone through beforehand and taken all the valuables off the floor away from the water. … I was really happy about that,” Reasoner said. “It was wet in weird places. Not all of the floor was wet, but then I opened my dresser and the entire drawer was filled with water. I think some parts were coming from the ceiling, and some parts were coming from the door. But my bed soaked up most of it.”
It is unclear exactly what the offices of Campus Safety and Facilities Management were doing during this time. The Facilities Management Office’s Rick Orr, manager of maintenance services, was unavailable for comment late Wednesday morning.
Around 1 p.m. Monday, Lincoln, the Trinity RD, sent an email to approximately 88 people, most of which are presumably residents, with her apologies for the disruption, informing them that they had 2-9 p.m. that day to pack everything up and move out. Residents who did not have a friend or family member to stay with for the rest of the semester would be assigned temporary housing.
Students were given cardboard boxes to temporarily store their things in Adams Lounge until they moved to their new housing location that night. Students were also provided plastic boxes for items to be stored by the Office of Facilities Management in a secure storage unit over Christmas break. Trinity washers and dryers were available free of charge from Tuesday to Thursday for students to wash their water-soaked clothes and bedding.
Campus Safety workers were also available that afternoon to help residents pack and move their things, in addition to escorting them in and out that morning, according to Reasoner.
“They [Campus Safety officers] were providing us with boxes and they were helping people carry boxes and move bunk beds and desks out of the rooms. They really had their work cut out,” Reasoner said. “Everything had to be moved because they’re going to take out all the carpets and stuff. That was a really hectic day.”
Diaz and two other freshman are now living in a previously empty Bowles apartment. Other students have more cramped living quarters – Reasoner and two friends are staying in the living room of a mod that already housed five men.
“So there’s eight guys in the mod right now and we’re sleeping in the living room with our boxes and everything, so it’s pretty crowded,” he said. “It’s pretty fun though, I guess.”
Reasoner didn’t want to stay in “some random guy’s room” so he asked his close friend Sam Newsome, a sophomore athletic training major, if he and his friends could stay at Newsome’s mod.
“It was one of a million shot, as far as the golf shot,” said Newsome, laughing. “It’s pretty nuts, and I guess I feel bad for them because I would have done the exact same thing. Just as a freshman, late-night shenanigans, just playing around in the hall.”
Martin said he is glad this is happening toward the end of the year, rather than the middle or the beginning, while Reasoner called the situation “unfortunate” and said he is just trying to make the best of it while focusing on his finals next week.
“It’s just kind of sad to be separated from our hall,” Reasoner said. “I hope they can fix it as soon as possible so we’ll be able to stay there right after Christmas break.”
Lincoln said the situation was unfortunate and that her top priority is helping students adjust back into dead week and finals week.
“We are hopeful that the situation will be resolved by the time everyone returns from winter break, but of course that’s all in the hands of (the offices of ) Facilities and Campus Safety and the contractors and the restoration crew,” she said. “They will take as much time as they need to make sure the building is livable.”