A weathered pipe broke suddenly in the Carlmont sewer line, causing a water overflow on Aug. 13.
According to Grant Steunenberg, an Administrative Vice Principal (AVP), an old pipe beneath the student union broke. The result of the break led to a flood near the drop-off circle by the pool. Additionally, on Aug. 28, a clogged pipe spread a potent stench from the weight room to the swimming pool.
“Pipes break from time to time, but we haven’t had one as severe as this,” Steunenberg said.
The old pipe is in a storage room below the student union. According to Steunenberg, Jerome Clarke, the plant manager, and other custodians managed to shut down the water meter, but abundant water had already flown out.
Narayan Naidu, the Sequoia Union High School District (SUHSD) director of maintenance and operations, shared that the water bubbled up on campus. It overflowed over the concrete and asphalt, flooding the basketball court, the weight room, the girl’s team room, and the lower girls’ and boys’ locker rooms.
“Since the pipe was huge, and water was not flowing continuously due to the summer break, the water became stagnant,” Naidu said. “Corrosion occurs with water, so a weak spot in the pipe must have been created and caused the burst.”
Belfor, the abatement company Naidu contacted to help get the water out, installed dehumidifiers that continuously dried the weight room and basketball court from Aug. 13 to Aug. 18.
“My concern was to get it as clean as possible. If the problem is not taken care of immediately, there’s a danger of mold,” Naidu said.
The significant leakage caused additional campus disruption to students. Steunenberg said no one had physical education (PE) due to the flood in the first week of school. According to David Heck, the weight training teacher at Carlmont, this unforeseen circumstance negatively impacted the entire PE department.
“This temporary weight room has caused issues with lessons, teaching space for other PE classes, and athletics,” Heck said. “We’ve had to be creative on how we use the room and equipment while keeping everyone safe.”
The clog in the sewer line below the student union caused bathrooms in the S, T, and U wings to close, spreading disrupting odors in the west part of the school on Aug. 28. According to Steunenberg, clogs are not uncommon.
“Flushable wipes or paper towels can easily clog the pipes and cause backups or leaks,” said AP Environmental Science and chemistry teacher Michael O’Neall.
According to O’Neall, a few ways to prevent clogs are only flushing flushable material, installing one-way valves, and using root protections for pipes, as tree roots often grow in pipelines.
That afternoon, Roto-Rooter, a plumbing and water cleanup service, arrived to clean the sewer line. It will still take time to replace new flooring and matting as the school year progresses.
“This school was built in 1952. When you have old infrastructure, it’s not uncommon for there to be maintenance problems,” Steunenberg said.
