New House floods again, due to sprinkler
An accidentally-triggered fire sprinkler in a second floor New House dorm room caused the latest occurrence of flooding in New House Saturday afternoon. Water leaked into the first floor lobby, the second floor corridor, and a section of the building closed for renovation. The floodwater affected six dorm rooms housing seven students.
New House residents were temporarily evacuated to MacGregor House by housing staff and area directors, while MIT Housing and the construction team worked to alleviate the damage to residential areas.
Fortunately, damage was not extensive, as there were no fires or injuries.
According to an emailed statement from David Friedrich, senior director of housing operations and renewal, to The Tech, “All students but one were able to return to their rooms on Saturday evening. The one student who was relocated temporarily is now able to return to their room.” Friedrich also reminded residents to avoid contact with sprinkler pipes and heads.
At the end of the 2016–17 academic year, after New House faced possible destruction, sections were closed for renovations due to extensive water damage from similar flooding incidents in 2015 and 2016 involving burst pipes and fire sprinklers. New House is slated to open to full capacity in fall 2018.