Pipe Bursts on Campus
Early morning this past Tuesday, a pipe break cut off the water supply to the gym and various dormitories, including Wentworth Hall, Cilley Hall and Amen Hall. Although the water came back on later that afternoon, residents of the dorms and participants in gym classes still faced difficulties.
“I went to fill up my water bottle in the morning and I couldn’t. I tried again in the afternoon and the water was brown. I was very inconvenienced,” lower Antigone Clark said.
The water break impacted campus throughout the whole day. In the morning, awaking students were dismayed to find showers, sinks and toilets not functioning. “I woke up and I was really ready for a nice hot shower. I was made aware that the toilets didn’t work. Then I realized that the shower wouldn’t either,” senior Maya Robinson said.
Pedro Sanson, a prep in Cilley Hall, shared Robinson’s frustration. “The water break was definitely a problem for everyone in the dorm. It made the morning less convenient,” he said.
Some students were especially annoyed because similar water issues have occurred in the recent past.
“I feel like when we have water issues, the same area is always affected, and unfortunately that includes my dorm,” lower Caroline Davis said. “I was really angry this time because I couldn’t shower or use the bathroom.”
Certain individuals even found themselves traveling to different dorms for water. “Without working showers in the gym or in Wentworth, I was forced to walk to Webster to take a shower after practice,” prep Jack Pimental said.
Some students, however, were not as distressed by the lack of water. “ [The water break] is not terribly inconvenient with other dorms nearby,” Cilley Hall resident Jack Baker said.
Athletic Manager Malcolm Wesselink attributed the pipe break to the Exeter town water main. “They had trouble with water in that area in early winter or late fall,” he said.
Besides dorms, the water break also impacted students who had morning gym classes. Olutoyin Augustus-Ikwuakor, a physical education instructor, said that the pipe break affected her classes. “Students are not used to bringing water bottles when the fountains are available in the gym,” she said. Augustus-Ikwuador went on to describe how some students ran outside to eat snow in order to stay hydrated.
Nick Diao, a senior in Augustus-Ikwuador’s introduction to fitness class, said that though inconvenient, the water leak was overall manageable. “Our coach made accommodations to make sure we could sit out if we needed to, in case of dehydration.”
Students participating in interscholastic sports also faced problems. “I wasn’t really bothered until practice,” Pimental said, “because they need water to zamboni the ice and the water had been out since the night before. The ice was chewed up by the previous practice and felt like sandpaper.”
Many athletes especially found the lack of showers in the gym inconvenient. “I couldn’t take a shower after my swim. It was a real problem for swimmers, and I wish it hadn’t happened,” prep Arielle Lui said.
Monday’s pipe break was not the first of its kind. Wesselink and Pimental recall a similar case that occurred in the same area a few months ago. “I woke up in the morning and the shower was making a hissing sound. I knew a pipe had broken because it did the same thing last time,” Pimental said.
Many members of the community believe that rather than focusing on the negative effects the water issues had on campus, students should focus on the quick repairs. “The town takes care of those things as quickly as they can,” Wesselink said.
“I’m glad they fixed it so quickly,” Sanson said. “It would have caused a lot more problems if it had gone on more than a day.”
Davis agreed. “I feel like it only would have gotten worse if it hadn’t been fixed quickly.”
While the recurring water issues have inconvenienced people all over campus, students remain hopeful that they have been solved.
“Hopefully they have been able to figure out what is going on and fix it permanently,” Lui said. “It’s really important for the gym and for dorms to have access to water.”