Low winter temperatures caused pipes to freeze, resulting in flooding in several buildings on the Hawk Hill and University City campuses.
Merion Hall and Griffith Hall were flooded at the beginning of winter break, while England Library and O’Pake Fitness & Recreation Center flooded around Jan. 20, wrote Ken Ogawa, associate vice president of administrative services, in an email to The Hawk.
“When temperatures drop low, even small issues — such as a mechanical component not functioning optimally — can lead to frozen pipes,” Ogawa said. “Given that the same extreme weather impacted all campus buildings at roughly the same time, it is not unusual that multiple incidents occurred in close succession.”
The most significant damage occurred in Griffith Hall and O’Pake Fitness & Recreation Center, resulting in the closure of sections of those buildings.
In Griffith Hall, the Marvin Samson Pharmacy Museum for the History of Pharmacy had to be reorganized to avoid damage being done to the collection.
Emma Gunuey-Marrs, the museum’s assistant curator, said while some items were affected by the flooding, the UCity community helped with cleanup efforts.
“Some of the collection items that were on display did get wet during the initial incident,” Gunuey-Marrs said. “So nothing was lost, which is really wonderful and a testament to how quickly we were able to address the issue. On that Monday, we came in, and a huge group of volunteers from PCP [Philadelphia College of Pharmacy] just descended over the break and helped us de-install pretty much the entire gallery.”
Gunuey-Marrs said portions of the ceiling were damaged enough that it needed complete replacement, and some items were impacted more than others.
“The object that was the most affected was a botanical map,” Gunuey-Marrs said. “It’s a large work on paper, and so there’s an amount of staining that is visible, but it’s still intact. So, we did not lose that piece.”
Because of the flooding, Gunuey-Marrs said the artist in residence show that was supposed to be installed in January has now been postponed to the fall 2025 semester.
In O’Pake, meanwhile, a burst sprinkler line on the second floor led to damage in two hallways and to the wood basketball floors.
Ogawa said that repairs to the court are currently in progress and are expected to be completed over spring break. Half of a first floor basketball court remains closed until the repairs are finished.
Gavin Kneller ’27, a member of the club volleyball team and a front desk attendant at O’Pake, said this closure causes some disruption for gym-goers.
“If the gym’s taken [by] a club team or the dance team, or someone else has the gym reserved, and the people that are coming here do recreational stuff, like basketball, in the gym, they can’t do it because there’s only two gyms, and the one on one side of the court isn’t functional,” Kneller said.
In contrast, only the carpets in Merion Hall and England Library were damaged and were quickly replaced.
Ogawa emphasized the Facilities team’s quick response to the flooding.
“In each case, our Facilities team responded quickly — within minutes to hours — to stop the flooding and begin mitigation efforts,” Ogawa said. “The exact duration of flooding varied depending on the situation, but our team acted as swiftly as possible to minimize impact and begin the recovery process.”
Monica Sowinski ’26 contributed to this article
