Tropical storm Lee swept over south Louisiana over the Labor Day weekend, and the constant rain caused flooding in some areas. Although Southeastern seemed unaffected by the end of the weekend, mixed reports have been made regarding damages all over campus.
“There was no damage to the residence halls over the weekend,” said Robin Rodrigue, director of marketing and strategic initiatives with Auxiliary Services. “The weekend staff addressed some reports of water blowing into the exterior halls under the main entrance doors, but this is relatively common during heavy rain storms. There was no damage in any part of the residential community that required any type of repair.”
In addition, the Physical Plant Director Byron Patterson had no comment on damages or lack thereof, and the University Police Department also had nothing to report.
“No damages due to Tropical Depression Lee have been reported to the University Police Department,” stated Lieutenant Patrick Gipson.
On the other hand, Kelley Murphy, a sophomore marketing major, said that her room in the Alpha Sigma Tau sorority house on North Campus had at least an inch and a half of water in it. She returned to her room on Saturday to find that all of her computer chords and chargers were sitting in water, and her rugs had to be thrown away. Also, many of her books got water damage due to the unexpected flooding.
“When I called and told Housing, they said that there was nothing they could do about it and to call maintenance,” said Murphy. “The maintenance men were there at least ten times Saturday to clean it up.”
“It was very stressful,” said Murphy about the experience. “Housing still hasn’t gotten back to me either, and I’m not going to keep paying $2500 to live in a room that is going to flood every time it rains.”
A few other students had complaints about damages to their rooms that occurred over the Labor Day weekend mostly involving water damage.
“The hole [in the wall] was irritating me,” said Tuan Tran, a freshman majoring in industrial technology. “I could see the sun coming in, not to mention the things that came in. The hole in the wall probably explains the mold in the ceiling and on the floors.”
“I had to put a towel under the window to stop the water,” stated Jacob Treadway, a freshman majoring in history.
University Housing declined to comment on the complaints.
“It was a large amount of rain in a short amount of time,” stated Connie Davis, the director of Auxiliary Services. “They never lost power. They didn’t have to evacuate.”
Any damages caused to a residential hall at any time should be reported directly to University Housing and Auxiliary Services as soon as the damage is noticed. To reach Housing, email universityhousing@selu.edu or call 985-549-2118 during regular daytime office hours.