Tucson’s recent chilly weather will cost the UA thousands of dollars in repairs – a price that could hurt departments’ already slim budgets.
The $3.5 million deductible the university pays each year may not cover all costs for unscheduled maintenance, said Steve Holland, director of UA Risk Management and Safety.
“”The department that may incur those losses may end up having to absorb those costs in the form of not being able to fill a position or send someone to a conference or do some scheduled maintenance because the funding that was allocated for that may have to be used for emergency repair,”” Holland said.
In the past week, 11 areas on the UA campus were affected by the near-freezing weather that dipped into the low 20s, said Christopher Kopach, associate director of Facilities Management.
The second floor of the Arizona State Museum, two classrooms in the Fine Arts Complex and several clinical research rooms at the College of Medicine building were among the damaged property.
The damage was caused by water pipes that burst from the cold weather, Kopach said. A class in the Fine Arts Complex was relocated for two weeks while Risk Management and Safety coordinated with Facilities Management to return the building to normal.
All the damages to the property, which may amount to “”several thousand”” dollars, occurred before the winter storm Sunday night, Kopach said.
“”We tend to typically have a lot more water infiltration damage in the summer from the monsoons, rather than the winter rains,”” Holland said. “”Even the snowfall we’ve had is pretty gentle in terms of impact, from a flooding standpoint.””
The cost of repairs does not fall under the responsibility of the students, said Dick Roberts, UA budget director. Under state law, the university is required to be covered by insurance. State Risk Management, the UA’s insurance provider, generally will cover accidental and emergency costs of repair.
Other areas close to campus have also been affected by the weather.
American Apparel on East University Boulevard was unable to operate for five days because a hot water pipe burst.
The store lost more than 5,000 items of clothing, said Matthew Wade, assistant manager of American Apparel.
The winter storm interrupted Alltel’s wireless cell phone service last week because of a broken water pipe as well.
“”The entire network in the Tucson area was inoperable,”” said Andrew Morau, spokesman for Alltel.
