Students evacuated when broken sprinkler douses dorm

By: News Staff

Email: news@abc6.com

Twitter: @ABC6

SMITHFIELD, R.I. (WLNE) – A sprinkler break in a freshman residence hall Wednesday night caused students to evacuate their dorms as a significant amount of water damaged the area.

Between final exams, graduation set up, and a freshman dorm hall being evacuated due to flooding, students had a lot to figure out.

Students who spoke with ABC6 were still in good spirits despite all the commotion.

Freshmen students at Bryant University returned to campus Thursday morning after hundreds spent the night in local hotels.

According to the university a damaged sprinkler head and a pipe ruptured on the third floor of Bristol House residence hall flooding the floors below and causing significant water damage.

It turns out a thrown frisbee is to blame for rupturing a sprinkler head.

Students spent the night at a Holiday Inn Express just down the street.

The say the school paid for their room, but the whole ordeal throws a curve ball into their end-of-the-year routine.

Multiple students had final exams the next day and weren’t able to study much the night before, when the sprinkler break happened.

Luckily the university is working with students on a case-by-case basis, freshmen who were affected by the flood are able to re-schedule their exams if need be.

For the rest of the campus here at Bryant University it is business as usual.

The school says they are working with insurance companies to reimburse students for any valuables they may have lost due to the flood.

WLNE-TV/ ABC6 2019