Waterfield Library remains open to students despite a water main break that has limited access to the lowest level.

Jason Youngblood, director of facilities management, said water was observed coming out of the ground on the morning of July 15th, and Murray State employees discovered the water had reached the basement of Waterfield on July 16.

“There was a failure on a city water main on the southwest corner of the Library, between Waterfield and Carr Hall,” Youngblood said. “After excavation, [it was discovered] this was a small problem that had been developing over a long period of time.”

The University is working to fix the damage caused by the flooding, making student accessibility to the space a priority.

Cris Ferguson, dean of university libraries, said it’s important that students are still able to use the resources in the lower level of Waterfield. 

“Students will still be able to access the Makerspace on the lower level, but they will use an exterior door on the backside of Waterfield, rather than accessing the Makerspace through the interior of the building,” Ferguson said. “Library personnel will assist students, faculty, and other patrons that need materials located on the lower level, retrieving items on request. We are adding additional seating on the main level and upper floor while the lower floor is closed.”

Ferguson also said Einstein Bros. was not affected by the flooding and will be open to students at normal operating hours.

Behind the scenes, cleanup of Waterfield is underway; carpet on the east half of the lower level has been removed, all impacted furniture has been moved to dry areas and Facilities Management has used fans and dehumidifiers to dry the impacted areas.

“The drying and clean-up process has been scaled back to the mechanical rooms only at this time and is expected to be complete before the fall semester begins,” Youngblood said. “The extent of new carpet and renovations in the lower level of the library are still being determined and planned at this time.”