When sheets of rain began to fall on SF State Feb. 25, nobody could predict the danger it would pose, but nearly a month later, officials have come much closer to tabulating the scope of the damage.

Almost every building on campus lost power, including the Cesar Chavez Student Center, the Administration Building and the Student Health Center.

Saturated earth led to landslides and wild floods threatening Hensill and Thornten Halls, and exposed pipes – one a 24-inch, San Francisco water main and the other a sewage line – along 19th Avenue posed other potential disasters.

The basement level of Burk Hall was filled with pungent liquid, and more water ruined the landscaping around the humanities building. Sophomore David Berry's Honda Prelude was emerged in a lake that was once the first level of Lot 20.

To say the least, the storm took its toll on SF State.

And while faculty and administration have worked nonstop to clean up the campus – nursing wounds that may never heal – many questions have now been answered.

What Went Wrong

SF State Meteorology Professor David Dempsey was around the affected areas at Hensill and Thornton Halls during the peak period of rainfall.

According to Dempsey, the rapid rainfall and subsequent accumulation of water were to blame for the event.

“If it comes down too fast, there’s no place it can go,” said Dempsey.

Information collected and analyzed by Dempsey’s colleague, Professor John Monteverdi, reported that SF State was hit by 1.5 inches of rain in about 30 minutes.

Monteverdi’s data referred to the peak period of the storm as an event that happens every 1000 years, meaning there is a one-percent chance of it happening again in the next millennium.

Many said the floods were something that took them by surprise. According to Michael Strange, the equipment technician for the school of engineering, nobody really foresaw it.

Strange, a part of the emergency evacuation team for the sciences building, helped evacuate the building when the power went out. After removing a piece of cardboard and a tree branch from a storm drain on 19th Ave., he monitored the exit and entrance points of the building to make sure nobody entered.

According to Strange, an expert in fluid mechanics, storm drains neglected by the City of San Francisco were the main reason water levels rose to 19 inches above street level at some points.

"But even if the storm drains weren't blocked we would've had damage," Strange said. "It's a question of whether you want three swimming pools worth of water as opposed to two."

The City of San Francisco built the underground systems that are beneath SF State over 100 years ago. The storm drains and the sewer lines were never separated, and any time the storm drains overflow, the danger of feces surfacing becomes a possibility, according to Engineering Professor Norman Owen.

The classrooms most affected in Burk Hall were used by teaching credential students and local high school students in the Small Schools for Equity program. Co-Director Kate Goka was there when the water started to rise.

“We saw the storm drain backing up, and then the water just crept into the classrooms,” said Goka. “It smelled like sewage.”

A raw sewage leak can be dangerous because it carries harmful bacteria and viruses. Water damage alone prompted the removal of carpet and sheet rock in the basement of Burk Hall, but any bacteria growth would call for more extreme measures, according to Robert Shearer, director of Environmental Health and Occupational Safety.

According to Shearer, preliminary field tests ruled out the possibility that sewer water entered the building.

“It was just a storm drain. Thank god it wasn’t sewage,” said Shearer.

Picking Up the Tab

Officials still have not tallied the complete cost of repairs, but Vice President of Administration and Finance Leroy Morishita said that the price tag for the major water intrusion was, “in the millions and growing.”

But while cuts have been made in the University budget effecting nearly every area, participation in the CSU’s Risk Management Pool has remained a constant.

In a recent meeting, Morishita called the participation in the insurance policy – which cost the school approximately $800,000 a year in rising premium fees – a fixed part of the budget.

Most of the repairs will be covered by money specifically set aside for property damage which encompasses structures and permanent fixtures but not contents.

According to Morishita, the total cost to SF State will be a $100,000 deductible.

Along with preparation for the financial disaster, SF State officials have also made efforts to minimize harm to the campus community by making an Emergency Procedures Manual available on the University Web site, by organizing disaster drills and by designating and training personnel throughout the campus for an emergency.

The handbook covers incidents from natural disasters such as earthquakes and fires to accidents like hazardous material spills and blackouts. Campus police have even developed procedures for dealing with a hostage crisis.

SF State Police also developed the Emergency Operations Center for major disasters such as a fatal earthquake. The system links all buildings on campus to a central communications hub which works even when phone lines don’t.

According to Michael Strange, emergency representatives from each building meet once every two months to prepare for a disaster, and though the chances of a storm of this magnitude happening again are one in 1000, it is possible the same thing will happen tomorrow.

"We're as prepared as we can be, given the resources we have, and we don't really have many resources," said Strange.