Flash Flood and Fish ... Communications Center Saved by Heroic Efforts of Many
Susan Kashack's photos of the flood Eric Eisenhart's photos of the remediation |
A river of water and mud swamped the SSU campus in the early morning hours of Dec. 31 as rainstorms hit the entire region. Damage has been estimated as high as $ 1 million, all but the University's deductible is covered by insurance.
Causing all the devastation to SSU and surrounding areas was several
breaches of Copeland Creek which had split up on Sonoma Mountain, just east
of the campus. As water came rushing down from the mountain, it took one of
the paths of least resistance, East Cotati Avenue. The ditches on the SSU
side of E. Cotati overflowed and sent sheets of water across Lot F near
Ives, through the redwood trees and onto Sequoia Way (the main entrance to
the University).
The water then quickly moved its way further east, heading down West Redwood
Drive and toward Police and Parking Services, a low spot on campus. The
water was moving so quickly that it brought mud and debris with it, clogging
drains and spillways. The current was so strong in some areas, it was
difficult to walk across without the feeling of being swept away with the
tide.
"We had been monitoring the weather and could tell this particular storm was
going to pack a big punch and create flooding and havoc throughout the area.
On campus, we set up a flood watch and begin to prepare, knowing it was
coming," said Senior Director for Facilities Rich Marker.
The early morning hours of the rainstorm brought 4-1/2 inches to the North
Bay. The most damage on campus occurred in the Information Technology wing
of the Schulz Information Center, the ground floor of Ives Hall and the
Police Department's parking lot. Clean up of the mud left around campus once
the water receded has heavily impacted the workload of Facilities staff.
Facilities engineer George Petru drew the Saturday early morning watch and
worked alone to keep the drains cleared until the water got ahead of him. In
waist-deep water, he and Police Services staff began moving police and other
cars from the quickly-flooding parking lot.
More facilities staff were called in to sandbag as the waters continued to
rise at 2:15 a.m. Petru's efforts to keep the nearby drains open became a
"sacred mission" said one colleague as he worked through the night to keep
the drains clear and prevent the water from flowing into the data and
communications center housing the campus servers, network and phone systems.
Henry Amaral of Facilities Services reported seeing several small fish
floating by in the river that ran through the Information Technology
hallways. "We put them back in the campus lake," he said. Director of
Environmental Health and Safety Craig Dawson said they were probably
California roach, which had been identified in drains near Salazar Hall
which experienced creek water coming through at both ends of the pipelines
that day.
"There wasn't much we could do,” said Marker, “but continue to sand bag. The
whole campus was inundated with water and mud. It was a matter of minimizing
the damage.”
Director of Computer Operations Barry Blackburn awoke to a 4 a.m. phone call
on a Saturday morning from the data center monitoring system and heard the
sound of a fire alarm in his ear. A sensor in the machine room indicated
something was wrong. He quickly contacted Chief Information Officer Sam
Scalise, who was in the northern part of the state. Scalise loaded his
family in the car and began the 9-hour trip home, bypassing closed roads,
while continuously on his cell phone with Barry. Many fortuitous events, and
the work of IT and other staff, saved the campus data and communications
infrastructure from serious flooding.
The Information Technology area was the hardest hit by the muddy waters
traversing campus. The flood waters soaked carpeting and anything sitting on
the floor, which in some cases included computers and other equipment.
Remarkably, the data and communications centers remained operational.
IT staff have found temporary offices in other parts of the campus while
dehumidifiers and restoration crews work to dry carpeting and replaced
soaked wall board. The IT Helpdesk is temporarily located in Schulz 2007
(second floor, south wing, across from the elevator). The Helpdesk may also
be contacted by phone, email and on the web.
In Ives Hall, a significant number of music scores, books, phonograph
records, several carpets, and other personal items were damaged. The full
extent of the loss will not be known until faculty return in late January.
Facilities director Rich Marker expects the Information Center to be fully
restored by Jan. 22 and Ives Hall by Jan. 30 in time for the semester to
begin.