Broken Pipes Flood Long Term Care Home

WATERLOO — A broken water pipe at Columbia Forest Long Term Care facility, in Waterloo, caused considerable damage Sunday afternoon as water covered much of the second floor and leaked through ceiling tiles to the main floor and a dining room.

Waterloo firefighters were called to the scene around 4:15 p.m. where they discovered the flood, caused when the elbow in a sprinkler system pipe burst.

The pipe was located in an exterior housekeeping closet that had a large exhaust opening leading to the outside which in turn, allowed the bitterly cold air to come in contact with the pipe.

Firefighters moved quickly, removing a toilet and using squeegees to push the water from the floor into the open drain left by the toilet. The sprinkler system also had to be shut down and all furniture removed to prevent damage. A restoration company was called to fix the damage.

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