Several students in Mell Hall have been relocated after a steam pipe leak caused mold to fester in their rooms.

The problem first occurred between the University’s Thanksgiving and winter breaks, said Rick Gibson , director of Residential Hall Education and Services.

“To the best of my knowledge, no one is at risk,” Gibson said. “It’s not like there is this huge mold problem in Mell Hall or any other halls. At certain points in the year the moisture can lead to mold. It’s not black mold.”

Mold can result from water condensation and humidity in poorly-ventilated areas, according to the Environmental Protection Agency Web site. Gibson said many of the steam pipes in Mell Hall were capped off five or six years ago after a leak, but the steam pipes in question were not treated. He said he was unsure why these pipes were not fixed.

Lauren Lukaszewicz, a freshman from Kennesaw, said she noticed an orange-brown mold taking over her dorm wall and poking out from behind her posters. She said maintenance attempted to fix it with 409 cleaner but the problem continued.

Claire Elliot, a freshman from Savannah who lived in the neighboring room, said hall residents would wake up with moisture on their beds. She has since moved to another floor in Mell.

Mell residents were told their rooms would be fixed after Thanksgiving break, but when they returned, nothing changed, Lukaszewicz said. She said after the break her dorm room smelled “10 times worse,” so she moved in with friends to an off-campus apartment. Lukaszewicz has since moved to Church Hall.

Lukaszewicz said Housing did not provide assistance or compensation with relocation.

“We can’t give housing for free. They are still living in places where they need to pay for rent,” Gibson said.

He said he wasn’t aware that students had asked for compensation, but if they had, their petitions would be considered – though not necessarily accepted. Gibson said the repairs to the dorm have taken a long time because the “type of work is beyond the scope of what [they] can do in [their] department and that the length will depend on what a contractor finds upon entering the room.”

Work on the dorm began Thursday and Gibson said he hopes it will be completed by mid-February.

“Though I’ve never actually met with or spoken to the students, I think that we did everything in an appropriate and timely manner,” he said.