Burst Pipe Will Cost Univeristy $1 Million
A burst pipe in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) Building caused an estimated $1 million in damages and forced professors to cancel or relocate their classes Friday.
Around 3 a.m., a pipe connected to the cooling system burst and flooded all five floors of the building with chemical-filled water.
After examining the situation, the Department of Environmental Health and Safety, along with Facilities Management, Emergency Management, and the University of Minnesota Police, determined it was safe to dispose of the water in the sewer system.
Crews worked for several hours, but all Friday and Saturday classes in the building were either canceled or relocated.
Many students arrived at their classes only to discover that they had been canceled.
"We heard that maybe some classes might still be open, so we figured we had to check it out first," electrical engineering sophomore Kevin Lammi told The Minnesota Daily.
This is the second instance of pipes bursting at the university this season. Over winter break, a pipe also burst in the Bell Museum of Natural History; however, the damages there were minimal.
Several classes will return to the EECS Building Monday, while many others will continue to be relocated.
Officials predict it will take a week to 10 days for crews to repair walls, replace carpets, and thoroughly dry out the building to prevent future problems with mold.