Campus planning increases workload to deal with snow

By Renata D’Aliesio

Sal Martinez can’t help smiling when talking about the job his crew has done to keep Ryerson’s sidewalks and pathways clear of snow and ice.

“My guys are tired. They have been working a lot of hours and they deserve all the credit,” said Martinez, manager of campus services.

Martinez and Sam Chalmers began their attack of the snow Wednesday after 21 centimetres fell Tuesday night. Both have worked in the campus planning and facilities department for about 20 years. They knew to be prepared for the worst.

Martinez added four extra workers to his day crew and changed the start time to 4 a.m. from 7.

Chalmers, the department’s assistant director, made sure seven of his workers, who are responsible for problems such as burst pipes and electrical shortages, were on hand Friday and the weekend. Normally no one works weekends.

Between the two services, Martinez and Chalmers estimate 90 overtime hours were logged last week because of the weather.

“One more snow storm I’ll have to bring salt from home,” said Martinez.

While last week’s snow storms didn’t’ cause any structural damage to Ryerson’s buildings, some flooding and leaks were expected, said Chalmers.

Some noticeable storm damage:

• A leaky roof set of the third-floor smoke detector in the Interior Design building just before 2 a.m. Friday morning. Snow buildup on the roof is being blamed.
• Falling ice crashed through a pane of glass above Jorgenson Hall’s second-floor walkway near the library. No one was injured.
• A pipe burst on the weekend in a weekend in a washroom near RyePride on the second-floor of Jorgenson.
• A second pipe burst Saturday and caused major flooding in the cashier’s office in Jorgenson’s basement. The bust occurred near a heating system above the third floor. Two computers in the cashier’s office were destroyed and the carpet will have to be ripped out and replaced.
• The lounge near the faculty dining area has experienced flooding problems since the first storm on Jan. 2. Eleven bins, mostly round blue recycling containers have been placed in the area to catch water dripping from the glass roof.
• A puddle of water has collected in Jorgenson’s basement. A garbage can was placed to collect water that appeared to be dripping from the top of a doorway.