Flooding in two dormitories this semester has left Winthrop scrambling
First, a water pipe bursts in Courtyard on the first day of the semester, displacing the entire building for a night and forcing some students into new dorm rooms. Now, entire sections of the building are under repair, with no date given on when they will reopen.
Just last week, a pipe has burst in Richardson Hall, leaving another swath of students wondering where they will be living for the rest of the semester. The pipe burst on the 7th floor, leaving 2 inches of standing water in some students rooms. While most of the building was left unscathed, a section of the 7th and 6th floors was flooded. The dorm closed after the fire alarm went off around 12:30, and students were not allowed to return until 10 a.m.
Now, I was there for the Courtyard flooding. There was a waterfall in the lobby and students were walking through flooded hallways and stairwells, unless they were scooping up water with buckets in their rooms. Even with the chaos, other students were allowed to return back to their rooms for some sleep and to retrieve their supplies for classes. We had plenty of warning to back up an overnight bag and find places to stay.
On the other hand, when Richardson’s fire alarm started and people walked outside into the brisk February air in pajamas and light clothing thinking it was a quick fire drill, they were not allowed to go back in for supplies, clothes or even to grab things they needed but left behind. My best friend ended up sleeping in his truck wearing just sweatpants and a jacket with no shirt.
With two water pipes bursting in two months, both situations being handled completely differently, and an RLC not even living in Richardson when a critical situation happened, it seems that Winthrop either needs to invest some extra money on checking pipes or developing new plans to handle these situations. But first, they will have to pay for all of the repairs to damaged rooms, and of course a new logo that will be covering campus before the end of the month.
