MERRIMACK – A leaking pipe in the School District administrative office left about 2 inches of water covering the basement floor Friday morning and damaged at least a few computers and printers.

School Board Chairman Chris Ortega said he received a report Friday morning from business administrator Matt Shevenell, who discovered the leak, which appears to have started with a broken pipe in a men’s restroom, at about 7:30 a.m.

“He showed up to the office to find water gushing into the basement,” Ortega said.

Superintendent Marge Chiafery said the district payroll office was the hardest hit. The computer and a specialized printer that prints checks were damaged, as well as a printer and fax machine outside the office. The business office, located next to payroll, also saw some water damage. No monetary estimate of the damage is yet known.

The biggest impact to the building, however, was to the carpet, Chiafery said. District custodial staff spent the day ripping up carpet, pumping out water and trying to dry out the building.

“The custodial staff will work all weekend,” Chiafery said. “We’re hopeful that if people come in on Monday, they’ll be able to work in the building.”

Employees will be able to work in a different office if needed, she said.

The leak comes just days before residents are being asked to allocate $1.5 million to build and equip new special services and district administration offices in a central building.

The current offices, located in small, ranch-style homes adjacent to the high school that were built in 1963, have a history of issues with accessibility, confidentiality and security.

The special services building, which is used for preschool testing, evaluations and out-of-district placements, isn’t compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Creating a consolidated central office has been a part of the district’s Capital Improvement Plan for more than 10 years, but has been routinely postponed because of financial constraints.

Last fall, Hurricane Sandy damaged a large section of the roof at the special services building.

Although insurance paid to fix the roof and help eradicate water and mold damage, the basement remains unusable.

The new consolidated building would be located at the far end of the student parking lot on land the School District already owns. It is planned to be a fully accessible, ADA-compliant, one-story building that also would have a basement for storage and school records.

Ortega said Friday’s leak is the perfect example of the need for a new building.

“I think this speaks to the urgency of the project,” he said.

Danielle Curtis can be reached at 594-6557 or dcurtis@nashua
telegraph.com. Also, follow Curtis on Twitter (Telegraph_DC).