Brrrrr, it’s been freezing out there so far this week — just ask WWU
For the second time in as many days, Western Washington University is feeling the effects of the frigid temperatures that have settled over Whatcom County this week.
According to WWU Campus Advisory Tuesday, the Environmental Studies Building on campus was evacuated after a fire suppression sprinkler broke on the seventh floor of the building, triggering an alarm at 1:18 p.m. Lower floors of the building sustained water damage, and all remaining classes Tuesday in the building were canceled.
According to the advisory, WWU Facilities Management crews shut off electricity to the fifth floor and were addressing the water and the damage. The extent of the damage and how long it will impact the building were still being evaluated.
WWU spokesperson Paul Cocke told The Bellingham Herald Tuesday that the incident is believed to be weather related, as a pipe apparently froze and broke, causing the damage.
The Environmental Studies Building includes Western’s Huxley College of the Environment, the Geology Department and other classrooms, labs and offices.
On Monday, another pipe burst in the Viking Union, causing an estimated $20,000 damage on the fifth through seventh floors, Cocke said.
