Extreme cold tied to Kampus Korner pipe leak

On Sunday at about 6:30 p.m., the Logan City Fire Department received a dispatch notification at Kampus Korner apartment complex. When the fire department arrived, they saw a pipe had leaked near the parking garage of the complex.

Stokton Evensen, a resident of Kampus Korner, said he was in the parking garage when he noticed the leak.

“I was down here trying to jump my car and then a pipe just opened and made a big noise and flooded most of the floor,” Evensen said.

Evensen said his roommate tried to call 911, but the fire department had already been contacted through an automatic dispatch system.

Craig Humphreys, the Logan City fire marshal said this happened in several places throughout Logan Sunday.

“When we experience unusual, extremely cold temperatures like we just experienced the last couple days, we occasionally have pipes that freeze,” Humphreys said.

Jack Nixon, the owner of Kampus Korner said he built the complex in 1991. After 26 years of owning the complex, he said he has never seen something like this happen.

“We’ve had false alarms a few times but this is the first time we’ve actually had something break.”

Humphreys said although pipes freeze when the temperature falls below zero, the problem occurs when the temperature rises again.

As the temperature rises above zero after a pipe has frozen, ice will expand and cause pressure, which can causes the pipes to break and leak water through the system, Humphreys said.

Jack Nixon III, who helps run the complex said he was initially concerned when he received notification of the incident.

“You’re worried that it’s causing damage to either the building or the people,” Nixon said.

However, Humphreys said this can be very common and is not usually life-threatening.

“Yes, it’s a concern, however it’s just part of maintenance and we do it all the time,” Humphreys said.

Nixon said although the pipe will cost money to replace and the fire alarm system will cost money to be fixed, the incident should not otherwise affect Kampus Korner residents.

—aligirl123@att.net

Photo by Alyssa Roberts