Over the last three weeks, Erickson Residence Hall has been experiencing issues with their sewer system, leaving residents’ water shut off and causing sewer leaks inside the dormitory.
According to an email sent out to the student body on Oct. 4, the college believes the cause of the sewer flooding is due to the intentional clogging of campus toilets from excessive toilet paper and other foreign objects.
The email, sent by Dean of Students Wes Brooks, states the issue is not only affecting Erickson but other areas of campus, with many bathrooms becoming unusable. Director of Residential Life Chris Beyer said the first incident was reported around Sept. 25.
Due to the extent of the vandalism, the Office of Residential Life is now fining students in amounts of $150.
Since the college has yet to determine who is behind the vandalism, Beyer said the $150 fine will be a “common area fine” divided among the dormitory floor’s residents.
“We don’t like to see these things happen as much as anybody, but we do need the help of the students in order to make sure that things like this don’t happen again,” Beyer said.
Sophomore Zach Gray lives in Erickson’s D-wing and said sewage got into his room and contaminated some of his personal belongings.
“It started with just the bathroom being flooded. Then, they went to clean it, and it exploded and went into my room when I was at football practice,” Gray said.
Gray said his beanbag was covered in human feces and left in his room after the cleaning team was assigned to his dormitory.
“My whole room was moved around, and they didn’t move it back,” Gray said. “They barely cleaned it, just the floor. [There] was a strong bleach smell. Now, I think there’s stuff on the bottom of my dresser that randomly starts smelling really bad.”
Beyer said the only students affected from the biohazard were students located near the D-wing bathroom, along with two staff apartments nearby.
Vice President of Administration and Chief Financial Officer Kirk Anderson said in order to alleviate the issues, the water in Erickson has had to be shut off periodically.
Anderson said the water line goes all the way out to 30th Street, and the college has employed plumbers from the City of Rock Island to work on the lines.
“Any type of building that you have, the owners of those buildings are responsible for the system to a certain point, and then beyond a certain designated point is then the city’s responsibility,” Anderson said.
Erickson residents have received multiple emails from the Office of Residential Life containing information regarding water shut-offs and plumbing maintenance as well as fining and vandalism protocol.
On Oct. 8, Erickson residents received an email informing them of an almost seven-hour water shut-off in C- and D-wing on Oct. 9. During this time, the email from Beyer stated that B-wing water remained operational.
“We’ve always had at least one wing that has been able to remain operational, but there have been a few instances where we have had to do a full building shutdown,” Beyer said.
However, sophomore Sophie Fletcher lives in Erickson’s C-wing and said there have been times when the water was shut off without any prior acknowledgment.
“Sometimes we’ll just go to wash your hands or go to take a shower, and you can’t because the water is not on,” Fletcher said.
Overall, Fletcher said she would “appreciate better communication from the school”.
“I understand that plumbing is a tough thing, and it’s hard to get a handle on what the issue might be. But, it would be helpful if they were at least, like, ‘This is what we’re working on,’” she said.
Public Relations and Marketing Specialist Nicole Lauer said she knows the situation “hasn’t been perfect,” and said the college is working with residents to navigate through the issues.
“We know that this is not easy to deal with and that it has gone on for much more time than any of us would have liked to have seen,” Lauer said.
On Oct. 21, Erickson residents received an email from Residential Life informing them that the building had no hot water. It remains unclear whether this issue is related to the sewer system or something else.
“I think it’s a situation where you never really understand the problem until you get in and start checking and cleaning,” Beyer said.
In his ten years of being at Augustana, Anderson said he has never seen a sewer backup of this nature. He said the Erickson sewer system problems “feel like a new issue.”
The college said in an email to the student body that they encourage with information to contact Wes Brooks.
“Please hold one another accountable and if you see something, say something,” Brooks said in an email to the student body.
