Update: As of 10 p.m., maintenance crews were able to shut off a valve for the leaking pipe. Crews will now start digging Tuesday morning to avoid disrupting students. The parking lot is no longer accessible to students or the public, and all cars should be moved to a different lot.

A leaking water pipe has flooded Leebrick Hall’s main parking lot.

Maintenance crews discovered the leak at around 7 p.m. Monday. Water could be seen bubbling up from the cement, submerging the parking lot.

“We’re [going to] dig,” said Douglas Pearson, associate vice president for university facilities planning and operations. “We’re still in the early hours here.”

Maintenance crews suspect a loose fitting or corroded domestic water line may be responsible for the leak.

Pearson said the digging operation to determine the source of the leak will take at least four hours. If the source is further out, crews may be working into the night.

“We’re probably going to dig to get as close as we can,” Pearson said. “Historically, they’re pretty good at finding the leaks.”

Pearson added at least two leaks occur on campus each year, largely due to aging water lines.

Safety and Security have asked students to move their cars from the parking lot. If the leak continues into the morning, students in Tri-Towers — where summer residents and Destination Kent State students are staying — may wake up without a shower.

Alton Northup is editor-in-chief. Contact him at [email protected].