Students in Libby dorm have probably noticed that the pipes in their building are not working. Frigid temperatures throughout the week have caused pipes to burst in several areas around campus.
“This is not atypical for a cold snap to have pipes rupture, even in new buildings like this one,” said CU Spokesperson Bronson Hilliard. “There’s a freeze-thaw process that happens when the warm water comes back; the ice thaws and the expanding water bursts the pipe open.” Which is exactly what happened on Tuesday night, as freezing temperatures and subsequent thawing caused pipes to burst, causing major upheaval around campus.
“It appears to be a failed sprinkler head in the cooler area,” said CU spokesman Bronson Hilliard, citing a list of e-mails he had received from campus administrators bringing attention to the needed sprinkler repair.
Speaking on Thursday morning, Hilliard said that the sprinkler system repair professionals stated that the failure appears to have occurred “late last night.” As these repairs are performed, this system will have to remain down, but work has already commenced, and they stated it shouldn’t take more than a day’s work.
Breakfast for students living in Libby was served in Farrand. “The goal, I think, is to have everything up and running by lunch time,” Hilliard said. With news of the repairs and expected prompt return to normal routine, complaints soon subsided.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available. As the issue has been identified and it’s solution is being actively worked on, no major developments are expected.
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Sam Dieter at Samuel.dieter@colorado.edu