Burst pipe floods FO2 building

The first floor of the Faculty Office 2 building was found flooded Sunday morning when an underground pipe in the hot-water heating system ruptured.

Hot water and steam rushed through the heaters in the offices, causing water damage to the floor and to much of the faculty's material.

The first floor had been cleaned by Monday morning, but the floor tiles and the mastic used to glue the tiles to the floor contain asbestos, and the faculty are concerned that the damp and moldy-smelling air might be hazardous to their health.

Occupational safety specialist Richard Johnson had been collecting samples of air from the building since Monday, but said there is no evidence of a dangerous amount of asbestos fibers in these samples.

It is however necessary to continue measuring the air and reanalyzing the samples before any definite conclusions can be drawn, Johnson said.

Campus security notified the Facilities Management office about the problem Sunday morning, according to Facilities Management director Robert Quirk.

He said that when the staff arrived they found the building filled with steam and the first floor covered with water one inch deep, Quirk said.

Books and artwork were damaged, and some of the floor tiles were curled up.

History department chairwoman Sharon Sievers said she was disappointed with the way the Facilities Management Office is handling the situation. The faculty has not been reassured that their offices are safe and the response to the problem has been slow, Sievers said.

She also pointed out that if the faculty had been notified about the problem on Sunday, some of the damaged material might have been saved.

The Facilities Management office's primary concern has been to fix the mechanical problem and get the building back in function, Quirk said.

Replacing the damaged floor will cost around $30,000. There will be additional costs for overtime, painting, cleaning windows and removing mold, Quirk said.

The damage to the faculty's personal property has not yet been assessed.

The university will have to pay the bill for the damages as the building has no insurance, said the director of Safety and Risk Management, Maryann Rozanski.

Quirk said his department is exploring the possibilities of getting reimbursements from Los Angeles Air Conditioning, the company which put the pipes and heaters in the FO2 building during summer last year.

Los Angeles Air Conditioning has been working to repair the system since Tuesday morning, and is scheduled to start up Thursday afternoon.

Facilities Management intends to repair the floor during winter break, Quirk said.