UCLA apartments suffer storm damage
Construction workers complete an estimated $60,000 of repairs to the fourth floor of the Westwood Chateau on Landfair Avenue, which was damaged by the Oct. 14 rains. The storm also caused power outages for 26,000 Los Angeles residents.
By Frank Shyong
Nov. 2, 2009 9:58 p.m.
They laughed about it at first.
It was just a little leak, and innocuous enough, given the ongoing construction above their apartment on the top floor of the UCLA Housing’s Westwood Chateau, an apartment-style housing complex. Becky Witwer, a third-year international development studies student, placed a pot under it and went back to studying for her midterm.
But Tuesday, Oct. 14, was one of the worst days of weather in Los Angeles for a while, causing power outages for 26,000 people. Rain sluiced onto the exposed roof all night and powerful gusts of wind beat aside the double layer of protective tarps laid down by the construction crew earlier that day, who were in the process of renovating the rooftop pool.
Water pooled on the exposed drywall, and soon enough Amy Ly, third-year biochemistry student and Witwer’s roommate, woke up to screaming and a sound she described as “a faucet turning on next to my ear.”
It was 1 in the morning. Dirty brown water was collecting in lighting fixtures, forming bubbles of pressure on the ceiling, and even pooling in the tiny space inside the building’s fire alarm, which promptly went off.
“It was chaos,” said Ly. “There was at least an inch of water on the ground.”
Although repairs on the building are expected to conclude tonight. Seven units on the fourth floor had to be vacated for major reconstruction, and at least 30 other units in the building needed repairs for small leaks.
Kenneth Mackenzie, the assistant director for facilities at UCLA University Apartments, does not blame the construction crew, who were attempting to renovate the pool to comply with the Virginia Graham Baker Pool and Safety Act, which requires all public swimming pools and spas to be equipped with anti-entrapment drain covers.
“It was an act of nature,” said Mackenzie. “We’re just trying to abide by (the students’) requests, and we understand that it’s an inconvenience.”
Mackenzie estimates the damage on the fourth floor at around $60,000. The university has provided alternative housing and meal vouchers for those who have chosen to move out during repairs, and they will provide a rent credit for however long it takes to complete the repairs.
Mackenzie said he has not heard of any students with rain-damaged possessions, but any students who have complaints can fill out an insurance form to cover their losses.
Witwer and Ly have relocated to the Hilgard House Hotel & Suites on Hilgard Avenue. They said it has been difficult studying for midterms while relocating their possessions. Their room does not have a desk or a kitchen, and the walk to their classes has roughly doubled.
“It stinks because we don’t have any place to study, but everyone’s been really nice,” Witwer said. “I think they’re doing everything they can.”
Andreas Drbal, a fourth-year English student who woke up the morning of the incident and found construction crews tearing down the walls of the hallway outside his door, said that his daily routine has become significantly more surreal. Drbal decided to stay home during the repair effort.
“It looks like I’m living in a dungeon, and it smells like hell, too,” Drbal said, referring to the malodorous breeze generated by the waist-high fans that have been placed around the building to dry the carpet.
Chris Hokland, a University Apartments Facilities employee working on the repairs, said the repairs should be on schedule, though fixing the leaks on the lower floors will take longer.
“We’ve only been working on the third floor so far,” Hokland said.
Even though he said he’s going to miss the pool ““ “a great place to barbecue” ““ Drbal is looking on the bright side of things.
“(The flood) was kind of an adventure,” Drbal said.
