An estimated 1.6 million gallons of water — enough to fill more than two Olympic-size swimming pools — gushed from a broken water main last weekend and left buildings without electricity for several hours, or even for days in the most severely affected buildings. But as the lights come back on, the full effects of the damage are being illuminated, and for some, it may be much longer before things are back to normal.
Celia Klin is the chair of Binghamton University’s psychology department, which is centered in Science IV, the building that faced the full force of the damage from the burst pipe.
“My research has certainly been interrupted,” Klin said from an office in Clearview Hall, a room that she is using until the electricity is turned back on in her Science IV office. She said she expects that the power outages resulting from the flooding will set back data collection for her research by about two weeks. But her office is on the second floor, safe from the direct effects of the flooding. For those in the psychology department with facilities on the ground floor, the damage is much worse.
“For some people they’ve lost a semester’s worth of research,” Klin said.
Much of the research conducted in Science IV uses rats, but the frantic conditions caused significant stress to the rats, which could affect the results of the research. Klin said many of the animals are no longer usable due to the stress they endured, and that a new crop of rats could pose a significant cost.
“Rats are actually surprisingly expensive,” Klin said. But the costs are more than monetary. She said some researchers will have to “dump the data and start again.” This could mean that graduate students, who are on strict funding schedules, may not finish their research in time. This puts them in a difficult situation, in which they could run out of funding before they finish their research and could risk not completing their degrees. Klin said the department is looking into ways of extending funding for students affected by the flooding.
Still, a full recovery from the damage could involve the repurchase of major research equipment, some of which costs as much as $50,000 for a single unit. Klin said some labs most likely will not be operational again for weeks, or even months.
Wayne Schneider, assistant director of operations for physical facilities, is heading the effort to remedy the damage and return things to normal.
He said he first heard about the broken 8-inch water main just after 6 a.m. on Nov. 13. as alarms in Academic A and Academic B were signaling low water pressure. Before long workers on site traced this to the main break.
“It looked like a small geyser,” Schneider said. He estimated that 1.6 million gallons of water surged forth from the pipe, which was buried 10 feet underground.
According to University spokeswoman Gail Glover, the pipe has since been fixed.
“The pipe that broke has been replaced and has been tested and is operational,” Glover said. “It is a permanent fix to the section that broke.”
She said that the initial break was possibly due to the age of the line. Officials believe it was original to the building, which would put its age at about 37 years.
Schneider emphasized that maintenance is a priority for the University.
“We have a very aggressive schedule,” he said, referring to critical maintenance repairs.
In the hours immediately following the break, Klin was focused on damage control. Electricity to the buildings was shut off, and several freezers that contained samples vital to research were in jeopardy of being lost.
To maintain proper temperatures, the University had dry ice shipped in from Scranton. Klin and others loaded it into the freezers in the dark.
“It was pitch black also so we were walking around by flashlight in the mud,” Klin said.
Reflecting on the chaos of the day, Klin said, “It’s already becoming this weird blur.”
The full monetary cost of the damage is thus far unknown.
“We are currently determining the full extent of the damage and won’t know exact dollar figures for some time,” Glover said.
Klin was grateful for the remediation efforts and was pleased with the pace of progress.
“I’ve been wildly impressed,” she said. “The University sincerely committed to making this right and making the department whole.”
Celia Klin is the chair of Binghamton University’s psychology department, which is centered in Science IV, the building that faced the full force of the damage from the burst pipe.
“My research has certainly been interrupted,” Klin said from an office in Clearview Hall, a room that she is using until the electricity is turned back on in her Science IV office. She said she expects that the power outages resulting from the flooding will set back data collection for her research by about two weeks. But her office is on the second floor, safe from the direct effects of the flooding. For those in the psychology department with facilities on the ground floor, the damage is much worse.
“For some people they’ve lost a semester’s worth of research,” Klin said.
Much of the research conducted in Science IV uses rats, but the frantic conditions caused significant stress to the rats, which could affect the results of the research. Klin said many of the animals are no longer usable due to the stress they endured, and that a new crop of rats could pose a significant cost.
“Rats are actually surprisingly expensive,” Klin said. But the costs are more than monetary. She said some researchers will have to “dump the data and start again.” This could mean that graduate students, who are on strict funding schedules, may not finish their research in time. This puts them in a difficult situation, in which they could run out of funding before they finish their research and could risk not completing their degrees. Klin said the department is looking into ways of extending funding for students affected by the flooding.
Still, a full recovery from the damage could involve the repurchase of major research equipment, some of which costs as much as $50,000 for a single unit. Klin said some labs most likely will not be operational again for weeks, or even months.
Wayne Schneider, assistant director of operations for physical facilities, is heading the effort to remedy the damage and return things to normal.
He said he first heard about the broken 8-inch water main just after 6 a.m. on Nov. 13. as alarms in Academic A and Academic B were signaling low water pressure. Before long workers on site traced this to the main break.
“It looked like a small geyser,” Schneider said. He estimated that 1.6 million gallons of water surged forth from the pipe, which was buried 10 feet underground.
According to University spokeswoman Gail Glover, the pipe has since been fixed.
“The pipe that broke has been replaced and has been tested and is operational,” Glover said. “It is a permanent fix to the section that broke.”
She said that the initial break was possibly due to the age of the line. Officials believe it was original to the building, which would put its age at about 37 years.
Schneider emphasized that maintenance is a priority for the University.
“We have a very aggressive schedule,” he said, referring to critical maintenance repairs.
In the hours immediately following the break, Klin was focused on damage control. Electricity to the buildings was shut off, and several freezers that contained samples vital to research were in jeopardy of being lost.
To maintain proper temperatures, the University had dry ice shipped in from Scranton. Klin and others loaded it into the freezers in the dark.
“It was pitch black also so we were walking around by flashlight in the mud,” Klin said.
Reflecting on the chaos of the day, Klin said, “It’s already becoming this weird blur.”
The full monetary cost of the damage is thus far unknown.
“We are currently determining the full extent of the damage and won’t know exact dollar figures for some time,” Glover said.
Klin was grateful for the remediation efforts and was pleased with the pace of progress.
“I’ve been wildly impressed,” she said. “The University sincerely committed to making this right and making the department whole.”
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