St. Thomas’ O’Shaughnessy-Frey library was left mostly unscathed after a storm dropped almost two inches of rain during a tornado warning in Minneapolis and St. Paul, according to the National Weather Service.
The library did receive some water that pooled out of the elevator shaft and fell onto the carriage and floor. Sophomore Bronwyn Harvey captured the indoor rain on video.
The building has had a history of water leakage in two spots. One is below the first floor located by computers and the other is a classroom on the third floor.
“With the morning inspection I was very happy to find no water in those spots,” Karen Batdorf, a circulation supervisor said. “In a building as big and complicated as this building it can be hard to find the original spot the water is coming in.”
According to AP News, more than 75,000 people were left without power Thursday morning as the storm dropped golf ball-sized hail on Shakopee.
Several fans have been placed on the lower levels to handle the dampness that has cropped up.
“There was something tiny,” Batdorf said. “Everyone can feel it’s really humid this morning.”
Sam Larson can be reached at lars4378@stthomas.edu.