Water inundates Gallup schools

Copyright © 2008
Gallup Independent
By Bill Donovan
Staff writer

GALLUP — Crews were working Tuesday at Gallup High School and JFK Mid-School to repair damage caused by waterline breaks during the past two days.

The more serious one was at Gallup high where both the A and B wings received extensive damage when a high pressure coupler broke.

The break occurred late Sunday but fortunately, said County School Superintendent Ray Arsenault, it was discovered after only a few hours which contained the damage mostly to ceiling tires and carpets in about 20 rooms.

The break, however, will give students there an extra day of vacation since teachers will be spending Monday, the first day after the Christmas break, cleaning up their rooms.

Arsenault said he wasn’t sure at this time whether the district will have to buy new carpet for the rooms. “If we can dry them out, we will,” he said.

He stressed that the problems at Gallup High was not caused by the cold but by a defective coupler.

The district has insurance but there is a $25,000 deductible, and Arsenault said he expected that the cost of repairs would be in that area.

Crews were also at JFK Mid-School Tuesday repairing damage caused by a water main break there on Monday. Arsenault said the damage there was minor.

There was also a broken line at Ramah Elementary but Arsenault said this caused no damage.