By Carleton Atwater
Residents of West Village had more to dread about going outside than just the cold last semester, as a broken steam valve resulted in an odor that left students smelling foul.
“It smelled terrible, like people were cooking raccoons or something,” said sophomore modern languages and cinema studies major Emma Curran.
The steam and the smell were the result of a failed pipe joint that supplied steam and heat to West Village C, E and Behrakis Hall, said Vice President for Facilities Dan Bourque.
Not only was there a terrible smell, residents said, but steam also blanketed the area outside of Wollaston’s. Junior nursing major and Wollaston’s cashier Amber Orlowski said many customers complained about the situation.
“It smelled like sulfur, sometimes it would even creep [into Wollaston’s],” Orlowski said.
The smell began in November and lingered for over a month as laborers worked to fix the problem. The repairs took longer than expected due to inclement weather and the need for a special structure to be built off-site, Bourque said.
“The reason for all the smell and the steam was because I didn’t want to shut off the steam supply [to the residence halls] while most people were still on campus,” Bourque said.
In the meantime the smell only seemed to get worse. Residents said rumors circulated that a sewer line had been breached or that a community of rats had died.
A group on TheFacebook.com for students upset about the situation was even created. The “Students against the putrid smell in West Village Quad,” eventually boasted over 80 members.
“After a while it started to seep into the lobby and eventually the whole first floor was smelling bad,” Curran said.
Residents returned from winter break to find both the smell and steam greatly reduced but not eliminated. Bourque said additional testing was required, but they hope to be done with the repairs by the end of the week. An additional valve will also be installed to ensure stability.
Students said the stink couldn’t be eliminated quickly enough.
“Some of my clothes still smell,” Curran said.
