Excess rainwater flooded the Drama room (F104) and the auditorium on Monday, Jan. 23, at approximately 2:30 p.m., interrupting Advanced and Honors Drama/Acting, which was in session. Drama students and school staff took swift action to help mitigate the situation and clear out the water, which spread across the entire floor.
Junior and Drama Marketing Lead Aayushi Ayalasomayajula says she was alerted to the flooding when she heard her classmates reacting. Turning around, she explained they were met with streams of water across the floor. Quickly realizing their wooden set pieces and other materials were vulnerable, Drama members worked to move them away from the water, which proved challenging as the water rapidly spread.
“We got brooms and desperately tried to push the water outside, only to realize that we couldn’t really open the doors because there was so much water buildup,” Ayalasomayajula said.
Monday’s rain was part of an atmospheric river currently passing through the Bay Area, which has prompted flood warnings across the South Bay. Unlike the majority of classrooms in the F building area, the Drama building is level with the ground and at the bottom of an incline. After the drains in front of the classroom clogged, rainwater flooded the room from under the doors.
Ayalasomayajula says facilities staff responded quickly to the emergency, bringing equipment to remove water and unclog the drains in front of the Drama room.
Although the flooding could have had catastrophic effects, Drama members and school facilities staff were able to prevent the worst of the damage. Ultimately, no costumes were irreparably damaged, despite the Drama department storing all the costumes for its shows in the flooded room. Though some wood set pieces got wet, enough Drama members were present to minimize the damage.
However, Ayalasomayajula and Costume Director Lynda Bayer remain concerned for the Drama room’s floors, which were designed and cushioned specially for dancing. Bayer says the prolonged exposure to water may warp the floors, which were already overdue for renovations. They’re also worried about the carpet in the parts of the auditorium that were flooded, which will be difficult to replace.
Ayalasomayajula is frustrated over this setback to the Drama department and their lack of control over future similar incidents. Addressing Monday’s crisis diverts invaluable time from preparing for the Drama department’s shows. Ayalasomayajula also says that as of now, despite facilities staff’s efforts to fix the damage from the flooding, MVHS is uncertain how to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.
“If the rain really gets as bad as it did before, I doubt just cleaning the drains is going to prevent flooding,” Ayalasomayajula said. “It’s more of a problem for us too, because SNL is coming up soon and we have rehearsals in the Drama room, and all of those can’t happen if it’s filled with water.”
