(no subject)

[rivka]

This morning I walked into the Institute and was not met by the customary blast of cold air in the lobby.

The air conditioning is out. So is the water. We have no working bathrooms and no cooling. It is August in Baltimore. This is a research facility in which people need to be able to, at a minimum, wash their hands.

Have they closed the Institute? No, of course not. Why would you think that? "Please use the restrooms in the Allied Health building."

I could go spend the morning in the library, and then the afternoon in the clinic. Except that I have to pump three times a day. When I'm at the clinic I pump in the room we use to see research subjects, which opens on to the waiting room and has no lock for the door. I put up a bunch of "do not enter" signs and pray, and I try not to have to pump there more than once a day. There's no private place to pump in the library, except maybe a bathroom stall. If bathroom stalls even have electrical outlets.

If I go home, I won't get anything done, because the kids will be there. I'd either have to pay the nanny and send her home (it wouldn't be fair to ask her to lose a day of pay without warning), or have her stay and try to keep the kids away from me while I hole up in my bedroom. pumping while she gives Colin bottles. That makes no sense.

Wait, okay, while I was typing this an e-mail came through from the COO:

As you all know, we have no water to the building. Campus Facilities is now saying that it will likely be back on in an hour. Meanwhile, one thing that is clear is that there is no safety water pressure in the labs. Therefore until further notice, please suspend all lab work that could possibly require safety water in an emergency.

We are still assessing overall building impact based on Campus Facilities repair predictions and will send more communications re: that soon – please let me know if you have any questions.

Okay, an hour. That's not so bad. I am crossing my fingers and hoping that the air conditioning will come back when the water does.

Comments

[telerib.livejournal.com]

No safety water pressure - like sprinkler systems? O.o Hope not!

[ckd]

The sprinkler systems are probably on a different setup; I suspect that "no sprinkler water" might be enough of a fire code issue to require not using the building at all.

This sounds like the lab showers/eyewash stations and so on are the issue.

[ratphooey.livejournal.com]

Can't you go home and have the nanny take the kids out and about?

[mjlayman.livejournal.com]

It sounds like the door might open out onto the waiting room, in which case you could put a hook & loop latch on the inside. But if it opens into the research room, you can use a flip latch (http://www.azpartsmaster.com/Products/Door-Security-Latch---Flip__SC525.aspx). It's reasonable for the room to have a latch.