Waterless halls

Corbett and Parmelee halls were like the Sahara Desert on

Thursday morning – water was nowhere to be found.

Don Wenzel, a Facilities Management employee, explained the

reason for the shortage of water.

“There’s a broken line in the courtyard. We got there early this

morning, and there was a big puddle before 7 a.m.,” Wenzel

said.

The puddle had soaked into the ground by 9 a.m., but Corbett and

Parmelee residents were left without any water. Wenzel said an

attempt to keep the intact water lines flowing was

unsuccessful.

“We tried as hard as we could just to isolate this one line and

leave some water running, but it just wouldn’t work. That’s not the

way it’s made,” Wenzel said.

The broken water line left some students feeling inconvenienced.

Elli Wilson, a freshman public relations major, said having no

water left her feeling high and dry.

“We have to go to Durrell (Center) to brush our teeth. We have

no water to drink. It was hard to get ready for class today. It

sucks,” Wilson said.

Charity Malone said it was the first time she has been without

water while living in Corbett, and the freshman zoology major was

not happy about it.

“I think it’s ridiculous,” Malone said. “Students pay this much

to live here and they can’t even have (the facilities) up and

running.”

When asked how she was affected, Malone said, “Honestly, I

haven’t been able to go to the bathroom or brush my teeth.”

During the temporary inconvenience, residents had to find

alternative ways to wash laundry, maintain hygiene and perform any

other daily functions that require water.

“They have to get a backhoe in there. It takes time getting the

rentals and filling out paperwork, but we should have it back on

today if there aren’t any problems,” Wenzel said.

Later in the day, a car-sized hole from the backhoe allowed

access to the line breakage in Corbett’s courtyard, but residents

finally had water after it was fixed. Brian Coram, a senior

psychology major and resident assistant, said the water was turned

on around 3:30 p.m.

Coram said that the water shortage did not affect the food

service at Corbett’s cafeteria.

“The water was turned off last night, so everything was clean.

I’m sure they’re catching up now, though,” Coram said.