| << Front page | News | November 16, 2007 |
Foul Sewer Smells will Close DeCafé for Semester
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Don’t Hold Your Breath: . Recent tests of the piping in DeCafé have revealed leaks in the sanitary line. Due to the smell, DeCafé will close after Thanksgiving break | ||
Students returning after Thanksgiving break will find DeCafé closed as part of a joint decision by Campus Dining Services, Bon Appétit and Student Facilities to suspend operations while an underground sanitary line is repaired. The last operational day of the semester for DeCafé and the Rathskellar will be Wednesday, Nov. 21. Repairs should be complete by February 3, 2008, one day before spring semester begins.
The problematic pipe runs underneath DeCafé and was found in a state of disrepair after employees reported a sickening odor.
Employees began complaining about a “strange odor” in Decafé and the Rathskellar four weeks ago. The odor was a serious concern for CDS employees who work in the affected areas.
Full-time DeCafé employees describe the stench as that of “decay or sewage” and believe it has caused sickness, nausea, headaches and burning sensations in eyes and throat. The stench is particularly bad in the early morning, after DeCafé has been closed all night, forcing employees to open windows and turn on fans to air it out.
Employees have also complained that, after eight-hour shifts, they feel sick and unable to eat and that the odor clings to their clothing. No students have made official complaints about the odor.
Director of Facilities Operations Keith Watkins made it clear to the Review that the odor is very inconsistent, noticed by various people in differing places. “At any given time on a 24-hour time-cycle someone, somewhere in Wilder has reported smelling this odor.”
None of the DeCafé employees with whom the Review spoke were willing to let their names be printed. Of the three full-time employees, who all share persistent symptoms, one woman had already gone home sick from the odor and a second left during the interview due to feelings of nausea.
Upon entering DeCafé and the Rathskellar Wednesday afternoon, the authors confirmed the presence of a sewage-like smell wafting through the facilities. Student Facilities completed a comprehensive investigation of the Wilder drainage system by “smoking” all the pipes, in which crews closed off the drainage system and pushed smoke through the pipes. Smoke seeped into the building, indicating the faultiness of the pipes. Crews then guided a small electronic camera through pipes until they identified that one of the main sanitary pipelines underneath DeCafé was in disrepair.
“We won’t know what’s causing the odor until we perform exploratory surgery on the pipe,” said Watkins. “It’s under a foot of cement, below ground level. We need to see how much the pipe has eroded.... [Sewage] may have leeched through the ground to an area where it can access air.”
A certified industrial hygienist from the Ohio-based EA Group ran a series of tests on campus to ensure that the odor poses no health risks. The Oberlin Fire Department also performed air tests for methane gas, which yielded negative results.
During the repair, CDS and Student Facilities face the daunting task of meeting the demands of students and staff accustomed to stopping in DeCafé and Rathskellar – sometimes several times a day – and of relocating employees who work there.
Michele Gross, Director of Business Operations and Dining Services, said, “All the [CDS] workers will be rescheduled and won’t lose shifts. There is no planned reduction in staff.” Full-time employees will be placed in different dining halls or facilities.
Student workers may be relocated to different dining halls. Rick Panfil, General Manager of Campus Services, explained, “[DeCafé managers] Gina, Bryan and I plan to meet on an individual basis with student employees and talk to them about the process.”
Each student’s continued employment will depend on the length of time they’ve worked for CDS, availability during normal dining hall shifts, whether they will return to the job in the future and how critical continued income is to them. Most students do not work during finals or reading period, so affected student employees can expect to lose about three weeks of work, from Sunday, Nov. 25 to Thursday, Dec. 13.
Senior Vanessa Richards, a student manager at DeCafé and a waitress at the Rathskellar, said, “It definitely seems like they’re really concerned about relocating student workers.” All the food products currently in DeCafé will be available in Wilder Main. There will be 40 seats set up and coolers brought in to hold chilled foods and pre-made sandwiches. The Science Cart will open an express coffee line, offer a wider range of foods including pre-made sandwiches and start a new evening shift from 5 to 6:30 p.m. However, students will be unable to order handmade sandwiches, salads and smoothies.
According to Panfil, “We do recognize that this is an inconvenience to the students. The process [of re-organizing Decafé services] is a fluid one. The plan we have now can change as new developments surface.” Watkins added, “We’re planning everything on the data we have – what students want, what sells. We can adjust things if necessary after the first week.”
The problematic pipe runs underneath DeCafé and was found in a state of disrepair after employees reported a sickening odor.
Employees began complaining about a “strange odor” in Decafé and the Rathskellar four weeks ago. The odor was a serious concern for CDS employees who work in the affected areas.
Full-time DeCafé employees describe the stench as that of “decay or sewage” and believe it has caused sickness, nausea, headaches and burning sensations in eyes and throat. The stench is particularly bad in the early morning, after DeCafé has been closed all night, forcing employees to open windows and turn on fans to air it out.
Employees have also complained that, after eight-hour shifts, they feel sick and unable to eat and that the odor clings to their clothing. No students have made official complaints about the odor.
Director of Facilities Operations Keith Watkins made it clear to the Review that the odor is very inconsistent, noticed by various people in differing places. “At any given time on a 24-hour time-cycle someone, somewhere in Wilder has reported smelling this odor.”
None of the DeCafé employees with whom the Review spoke were willing to let their names be printed. Of the three full-time employees, who all share persistent symptoms, one woman had already gone home sick from the odor and a second left during the interview due to feelings of nausea.
Upon entering DeCafé and the Rathskellar Wednesday afternoon, the authors confirmed the presence of a sewage-like smell wafting through the facilities. Student Facilities completed a comprehensive investigation of the Wilder drainage system by “smoking” all the pipes, in which crews closed off the drainage system and pushed smoke through the pipes. Smoke seeped into the building, indicating the faultiness of the pipes. Crews then guided a small electronic camera through pipes until they identified that one of the main sanitary pipelines underneath DeCafé was in disrepair.
“We won’t know what’s causing the odor until we perform exploratory surgery on the pipe,” said Watkins. “It’s under a foot of cement, below ground level. We need to see how much the pipe has eroded.... [Sewage] may have leeched through the ground to an area where it can access air.”
A certified industrial hygienist from the Ohio-based EA Group ran a series of tests on campus to ensure that the odor poses no health risks. The Oberlin Fire Department also performed air tests for methane gas, which yielded negative results.
During the repair, CDS and Student Facilities face the daunting task of meeting the demands of students and staff accustomed to stopping in DeCafé and Rathskellar – sometimes several times a day – and of relocating employees who work there.
Michele Gross, Director of Business Operations and Dining Services, said, “All the [CDS] workers will be rescheduled and won’t lose shifts. There is no planned reduction in staff.” Full-time employees will be placed in different dining halls or facilities.
Student workers may be relocated to different dining halls. Rick Panfil, General Manager of Campus Services, explained, “[DeCafé managers] Gina, Bryan and I plan to meet on an individual basis with student employees and talk to them about the process.”
Each student’s continued employment will depend on the length of time they’ve worked for CDS, availability during normal dining hall shifts, whether they will return to the job in the future and how critical continued income is to them. Most students do not work during finals or reading period, so affected student employees can expect to lose about three weeks of work, from Sunday, Nov. 25 to Thursday, Dec. 13.
Senior Vanessa Richards, a student manager at DeCafé and a waitress at the Rathskellar, said, “It definitely seems like they’re really concerned about relocating student workers.” All the food products currently in DeCafé will be available in Wilder Main. There will be 40 seats set up and coolers brought in to hold chilled foods and pre-made sandwiches. The Science Cart will open an express coffee line, offer a wider range of foods including pre-made sandwiches and start a new evening shift from 5 to 6:30 p.m. However, students will be unable to order handmade sandwiches, salads and smoothies.
According to Panfil, “We do recognize that this is an inconvenience to the students. The process [of re-organizing Decafé services] is a fluid one. The plan we have now can change as new developments surface.” Watkins added, “We’re planning everything on the data we have – what students want, what sells. We can adjust things if necessary after the first week.”
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