A busted sprinkler in Sullivan Residence Hall Sunday morning  forced the evacuation of all residents while University Housing staff, Campus Police, and facilities investigated the incident and assessed damages.

William Kronenwetter, a sophomore in mechnical engineering, said he was awakened at 8:44 a.m. by what he described as an explosion.

“I thought a tornado had come through, because of the weather reports from the night before,” Kornenwetter said. “I [got] out of bed and slipped and cut my foot on something on the ground and [ran] out in my boxers while getting sprayed in the face with black water.”

From the moment he realized something was wrong, Kronenwetter said he was intent on getting his suitemates and himself out of the building.

“I got out of my room and knocked on my suitemates’ room,” he said. “The first thing that came to mind was getting everybody out.”

Kronenwetter said 20 seconds after the sprinkler burst, a fire alarm went off and he and his suitemates evacuated to the area in between Sullivan, Lee, and Bragaw.

Kronenwetter went to talk with the paramedics on the scene, mostly because he was unsure what had actually happened in his room.

“I thought the window had blown in,” Kronenwetter said.

After he was found out the incident was due to a busted sprinkler Kronenwetter realized what had actually woken him.

“The water pressure from the nozzle was so hard it hit my blinds and knocked [them] over,” Kronenwetter said. “When it hit my window it made one giant explosion and that’s what woke me up.”

While he was speaking with the paramedics, Kronnenwetter and other observers watched as water cascaded down the side of the building.

“They sat me down and ran some checks to find out if I was alright,” Kronenwetter said. “[Then I] saw all this water coming down.”

Kronnenwetter said he received a “nasty cut” on his ankle when he left his room, but when the paramedics released him, a University fire official informed him his room was flooded.

“They said my room had filled all the way up to the ceiling,” Kronenwetter said, adding that in his rush out the door, the only thing he was able to get from his room was his cell phone.

“Everything else has water damage,” he said. “I’m trying to get everything aired out.”

Kronenwater isn’t sure what will become of his personal belongings or if he’ll be compensated for damages.

“That’s still up in the air,” he said. “We don’t know what’s going down with my personal belongings.”

Matt Carpenter, a freshman in computer engineering and community assistant in Sullivan, said compensation for damages is mainly determined by an individual’s insurance.

“What’s in the [housing] contract is you have to have homeowner’s insurance,” Carpenter said. “What’s covered at home is the same as here.”

Carpenter said residents were instructed to contact their parents to find out more information about their insurance plans.

Carpenter noted Housing was dealing with the incident in a very organized manner, especially in the case of the resident advisers who managed an information desk for residents and shuttled residents to and from their rooms to make sure their rooms were safe.

“It’s like an army down here running this thing,” Carpenter said.

Still, residents like Leo Verceles-Zara, a freshman in biochemistry, said Housing employees kept many of those evacuated in the dark.

“THey didn’t really tell us what was going on,” Verceles-Zara said. “They just tried to get us out of the way.”

Verceles-Zara said he was still under the impression there was a fire in the building when he was directed to Lee Field. He also said the investigation and assessment of the damage lasted longer than he expected, as he wasn’t allowed back in until three hours later.

Eric Tester, a junior in mechanical engineering, resides in a suite that was damaged heavily by water.

“The other side of the suite had pretty heavy damage,” he said. “They had to take their rug out and were mopping the floor.”

Tester said he and his suitemates were allowed back in the suite, but were not able to stay.

“We were allowed to go in there, get some of our things, and report damage, then leave again,” he said.