Massachusetts College of Art and Design dorm building floods, students say they had no place to stay
BOSTON - Students living in the Massachusetts College of Art and Design's treehouse dorms were forced to evacuate late Friday night after officials say the sprinkler system malfunctioned.
But students living in the dorm said it was not that simple.
"There's a very long pipe that goes from ground floor to floor 21.From this pipe there's a bunch of spickets that control the fire system and this pipe is in a stairwell where sometimes the A/C turns on which is causing it to freeze and burst and goes all over the floor, said Shaelyn, a freshman at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, which shares the building with Mass Art.
"" Shaelyn said.
Images show frozen water on the outside of pipes and on the floor.
Residents were told at 9:30 p.m. on Friday to grab their belongings and leave the dorm. They were told to room with friends or relocate to the school's dining hall.
Other students were sent to nearby schools to sleep in common areas.
"If you did not have friends to sleep in their dorm, you'd have to sleep in the common room. Without financial aid I pay 75,000 dollars out of pocket. I can't even sleep in the place that I work so hard to be at," Shaelyn said.
"All students who needed accommodations were settled into temporary housing last night. An external contractor is on campus working to repair the system as soon as possible," the College said in a statement.
But students said that the use of "accommodations" might be an overstatement.
"We got a pillow and a blanket because they are not offering sheets. I am living in a storage closet," Emma, a freshman at the school said.
"I get a text from my other friend being like "Hey I'm on the street at 4 a.m. I have no place to stay,'" another freshman Faith said.
Students told WBZ that the school's pipe problem didn't start Friday, but that it has been an issue for the entire year.
"First it was we don't have a kitchen, our laundry hasn't been working. We've been going to this building over here to do our laundry for the last two weeks because of this pipe issue. The pipes have been an issue and now is when they're choosing to fix it, it's way too late," Shaelyn said.
School officials tell me the problem is being worked on and despite what several students told us tonight they are housing residents in proper dorm room accomodations.
The building is expected to reopen to students on Monday, and students may be able to miss class that day.
We're also told students may be allowed to miss class on Monday.
