For a handful of residents of Davidson-Wilson Hall, there was no shelter inside from the cold and wet weather outside this last weekend.

On Friday, Jan. 25 between 2 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. the sprinkler system in a room on the second floor of David Wilson Hall was accidentally activated. The incident was blamed in a report by Facilities Management on a coat hanger threaded through the top part of the sprinkler. The metal hanger ruptured the device’s glass fluid sensor, triggering the sprinkler and filling the room with water.

The water from the first room spilled out into the hall and into the rooms of its two immediate neighbors. Students from the three flooded rooms were given temporary housing in Longsdorff Hall.

While students were moved out of their rooms, water began to trickle down through the floor and into the first floor suite below. By the time cleaning began rooms in the first floor suite, suite 110, were also flooded.

“I heard about the flooding while in class via a text message,” said Nick Toole ’16, a first-year who lives beside the flooded room. Like the other occupants in the neighboring rooms, Toole and his roommate had to leave their room when water seeped in and flooded their floor. “I was impressed with the quick response from the school and the promptness with which they found us housing and provided us with information.”

At the time of printing there is no estimations on how much monetary damage was done, according to Durwin Ellerman, associate director of operations facility management. Costs will be determined by how many pieces of furniture and ceiling fixtures must be replaced.

“The sprinkler is a necessary item,” warned Ellerman. “Students should be more aware of where it is and what it should be used for. It’s an item used for protection.”

Both the first year rooms and suite are currently being aired out. A cleaning crew is currently using wet vacuums and dehumidifiers to clean up the spill and repair the damaged furniture.

According to Ellerman, plans are in the work to return the students to their suites by Thursday, Jan. 31.