Columbia Public Schools cleans up administration building after pipe burst Monday

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia Public Schools spokesperson said the district worked Tuesday to repair and clean up its administration building after a sprinkler pipe burst on Monday afternoon.

CPS spokesperson Michelle Baumstark said once that is done, then the district will begin to assess the damage.

"Our building is a two-story building. Both floors of one wing of the building are impacted. We are out for weather today, which has afforded us time to repair, assess, and make plans," Baumstark wrote in an email to ABC 17 News. "We will be working on plans for employee work areas in the building that are impacted. That information will be communicated to employees directly impacted by the incident."

CPS did not have class on Tuesday because of the weather. It had called off classes twice last week due to inclement weather and had a late start one day.

Neville and Sons water damage restoration company was called to the building on Worley Street around 3:30 p.m. Monday for the busted sprinkler line. Owner Kevin Neville said it looked like the pipe had burst in an office space on the upper level and seeped through to the lower level.

He said the flooring will likely be okay, but the walls will take longer to dry and lots of ceiling tiles have fallen down.

"When the sprinkler breaks above that, they're like cardboard and they just come crashing down and they make quite a bit of a mess," Neville said.

He said crews stayed at the building for seven hours until 10:30 p.m. Monday. They put out 144 fans and 40 dehumidifiers in the building.

"There's a lot of area that are affected over there," Neville said.

He said Neville and Sons will likely be at the building for the next few days, with hopes to have it dried out by Monday.

Baumstark said the district is still working to figure out what was damaged, and employees will be able to get into the area Wednesday to identify the damage.

She said the break was likely caused by the cold weather, although the district does take preventative measures to avoid this.

Neville said this weather has been keeping him busy, and it's only expected to ramp up over the next couple days. He said they typically get four or five calls a week, and received eight on Monday alone. He said all have been related to cold weather.

He said as the temperatures rise, people can expect more frozen pipes to thaw, leak and cause damage.

"With the sunshine, we may get some of the thawing and then that will cause leaks," Neville said. "But tomorrow, definitely, when it's (in the 30s) ... if the pipe cracked, when it thaws it's going to start leaking."

University of Missouri Spokesperson Christian Basi said there was a pipe break in both Schurz Hall and Hatch Hall on campus. Neither had permanent damage.

He also said damage is being assessed after water leaked into the ticket office at Mizzou Arena.

ABC 17 News has also confirmed water damage to Grayson Cottages and The Domain.

Neville asks anyone experiencing frozen pipes or water damage to be patient, as many companies and maintenance crews have been extra busy the last few days trying to get things repaired.

CPS wasn't the only Mid-Missouri school district to experience water damage. The Mexico School District in Audrain County canceled classes for Wednesday, "Due to heating issues and water main breaks in some of our buildings as a result of the extreme cold temperatures," an email from that district states.