Phelps pipe burst raises questions

Phelps Dining Hall has undergone adjustments after a pipe burst midday Saturday near the fireplace, causing minor damage and making the area inaccessible for regular diners. While the situation is contained and being cleaned up in an orderly fashion, there have been questions raised about the transparency of the college to explain the nature of the burst pipe and its contents. Accounts of the incident are conflicting. Over a dozen students claimed that the water smelled of sewage while others remarked it had no scent at all. While this can be chalked up to the nature of unreliable eyewitness testimony, there are further inconsistencies. For instance, several upperclassmen took photos which appear to show the substance glowing dimly, with an almost indiscernible black hue surrounding the material.

A handful of those witnesses have also said that, having been around the material that oozed down the wall and seeped into the floor, it caused the sensation of pins and needles across their forearms and cheeks. Few were able to investigate further before being prompted by an alarm to leave the building. There has also been suspicion regarding the nature of just who is handling the cleanup; While dining staff were those present during the event, they were not those who fixed the pipe and attended the mess. As reported by sophomore Katie Trost, several figures were among those to take charge in ushering students away and closing the area. The figures were described as wearing dark suits with white earpieces, quietly making comments into their sleeves. Service was restored to the hall Saturday night, with the area marked off using guard ropes. While things seemed to return to normal, several sources close to The Anchor reported seeing a series of unnerving images during their mealtimes.

Among these were shapes resembling people but with disproportionate limbs, motionless in place above the ruined carpet. Another student reported hearing a voice repeating the names of his early childhood friends, continuously and without cessation until he left the hall. A third source, who has asked to remain anonymous, remarked on an intense audio-visual hallucination they experienced. “There was this… I’m not sure what to call it. But it shimmered and kinda slid up out of the ground and had these long, long tentacles, reaching out in all directions. It was looking at me, but I couldn’t see how that would happen because it had no eyes. I shook my head and when I looked back, it was gone.” Authorities are also currently still investigating what exactly it was that the students saw on Saturday, but to this point they have yet to make any significant findings.

Students who will be utilizing the services of Phelps Dining are being highly encouraged to keep their eyes peeled, eat in groups and keep in mind the locations of all exits at all times. The college expects full service to be restored within the next few weeks.