The number of students affected by Wednesday’s residence hall water damage is less than university officials initially anticipated.
Bill Kibler, vice president of Student Affairs, said about 120 students will be impacted. Kibler said most of the damage occurred in Ruby Hall, and one wing of Ruby Hall is expected to be closed for the entire spring semester.
“The number changes hour to hour – it’s probably even less now,” he said. “These are the students who will not be able to move back into their rooms from fall semester, but we are working to find other space on campus for them to live.”
Kibler said approximately one-third of the affected students are student-athletes.
Other residence halls affected by water damage are Oak Hall and Magnolia Hall. Kibler said the damage in Oak Hall and Magnolia Hall is minor compared to the damage in Ruby Hall.
“We are in the process of quick repairs, and we think Oak and Magnolia residents will be able to move back in,” he said.
Kibler said while many rooms only had carpet damage, ceilings collapsed in some rooms and students’ personal belongings were damaged. Kibler said students will be able to access their rooms Thursday afternoon to evaluate damages.
“We have a process for students to work with us to assess damage to belongings, and then we submit claims for insurance coverage,” he said. “We have insurance that applies to this, and our goal is to help them.”
The residence hall water damage was caused by water pipe ruptures in fire suppression systems when Starkville experienced record breaking temperatures on Wednesday.
In a university news release, MSU Chief Communications Officer Sid Salter said MSU is watching for more weather-related damage to campus buildings, but so far the three residence halls are the only damaged buildings.