A drain pipe crashed through the ceiling of Westside Buffet last Tuesday during peak dinner hours, narrowly missing several campers as debris and tiles fell to the floor.
Construction workers were in the process of repairing the roof of Thayer Dining Hall when a pipe became unattached and fell down into the area where food is served in Westside, according to Dartmouth Dining Services Assistant Director Jerry Gambell.
"It all started crumbling," DDS employee Amanda Green '00 said, "and then the pipe came crashing through. There were lights hanging down from the ceiling and everything."
Because the tiles on the ceiling began to fall first, it gave students time to clear out of the way before the pipe followed a few moments later, Green said.
Although no one was seriously injured, participants in the College's summer camps will now dine in Home Plate, also located in Thayer.
The transferring of students to Home Plate will give workers a chance to repair the damage, Gambell said.
There were reports of one student who had sustained an injury and was bleeding, but Green said she did not see or hear about anyone who was severely struck by either the pipe or the tiles.
"We asked about injuries at the time and nobody said anything," Gambell said.
Gambell added that the camp directors took care of the students after the incident.
Employees and construction workers helped to clean up the mess "very quickly," Green said.
DDS employees were told that Westside would be back open in 24 hours immediately after the accident.
However, a large 10-foot-square hole remains in the ceiling of the cafeteria, and campers are still eating at Home Plate.
"First [DDS officials] said 24 hours, then they said by today, but now it's still closed," Green said yesterday.
