Water shutdown in the fountains over winter break

Sam Chaney

A slight inconvenience was presented to students who stayed in the Osprey Fountains during winter break when the water system in the dorm had to be manually shut down several times.

According to Bob Boyle, the director of Housing and Residence Life, there had been an issue with a large mixing valve in the building. This valve is what regulates the water system depending on whether hot or cold water should be going to an area.

“We knew we were going to have to replace this mixing valve, so we waited until the least amount of people would be in the building, which was winter break,” said Boyle. “This way it would have the least amount of impact.”

An initial email was sent out to residents of the Fountains on Dec. 18.

“We are making a repair Monday, December 18th, 2017 in Osprey Fountains to the water system. This will require the water to be off for the building starting at 8:00 a.m.,” stated the email. “We anticipate the water being turned back on by 1:00 p.m. We apologize for any inconvenience.”

According to Boyle, the maintenance was originally planned to take three to four hours. However, once the contractor came in, an additional issue with the valve was reportedly found.

At this point, Housing and Residence Life sent out a second notification email on Jan. 3 alerting students to further maintenance.

“Due to the weather closure, the repair to the water system has been rescheduled for Thursday, January 4th, 2018.  This will require the water to be off for the building starting at 8:30 a.m.,” stated the second email. “We anticipate the water being turned back on by 1:30 p.m. We apologize for any inconvenience.”

“They couldn’t fix everything in the same moment, which is why we had to go back a second time,” Boyle explained. “Thankfully, [the maintenance] is now finished.”

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