A water main burst late Sunday night nearly kept Alumni Gymnasium and Berry Sports Center closed Monday, but quick repair work brought both complexes back up and running by 11 a.m.
The pipe burst, which left Alumni Gym and Berry Sports Center without cold water, occurred when an old water pipe cracked beneath East Wheelock Street.
Manley Gymnasium, adjacent to Alumni Gym, was not affected by the accident because it draws cold water from a separate water main.
The incident was "was probably a result of the freeze-thaw process," Facilities Operation and Management employee Frank Roberts said. "It was just a stress point that decided to crack.
The College decided to close the gym facilities, because without cold water, the facilities' toilets would not flush, Roberts said.
Roberts also said that the complexes were closed due to a concern that facilities users who use the locker rooms could be scalded from hot water, which was not affected by the main break.
"The dilemma is that if someone hops into the shower, there is no cold water to temper it," Roberts said.
Cynthia Crutchfield, an Operations and Facilities for Athletics employee, said the only athletic teams affected by the incident were the North Country Aquatics Club masters' swim team and the Dartmouth women's swim team. But other teams were making contingency plans.
The facilities were slated to be closed because of uncertainty as to how much damage was done to the water main.
"At one o'clock this morning, we weren't sure about the scope of the problem, so we took what we considered to be the best course of action in deciding to close the facility," Crutchfield said.
Crutchfield attributed the gym's early reopening to the work of Facilities, Operations and Management employees who dug up and repaired the pipe and to a bit of luck.
"Luckily, the water company had the part that we needed to put us back in business quickly," Crutchfield said.
Kresge-goers said that they were particularly relieved that the College briskly repaired the water main and reopened athletic facilities.
"I would have been mad if the gym was closed because I wanted to work out," Meredith Raucher '06 said. "I was busy writing a paper all day and had writers block and needed to free my mind from stress."
Jason Hartwig '06 also said he was pleased Kresge did not shut down Monday.
"I lift everyday," Hartwig said. "Preventing old pipes from bursting is something that is relatively easy to do, I think. It's inexcusable to pay so much money to go to Dartmouth and have the gym closed for the whole day because the school neglected to upkeep something."
