Multiple UoB Chamberlain flats were left with no cold water for most of Sunday

Yesterday, residents in Block A in Chamberlain Halls were left without running cold water in their flats for most of the day. Some flats found even when the water did come back, it ran yellow for some time, or was “spitting a lot and making some dodgy noises.”

Students were particularly upset, as there was no warning of this and the water took about seven hours to return – Alex expresses her frustration even when the water returned. “It was pouring out a disgusting yellow colour,” she told The Birmingham Tab.

The problem started at 12pm, where some flats found their the cold water in their kitchens wasn’t working at all. Later, this spread into the bathrooms too, and some were hesitant to even try flushing the toilets. Many students attempted to contact The Vale Reception, but with phone lines down it was much harder to get hold of them than it should have been.

Alex, UoB student studying psychology, emailed the Vale Reception to explain what happened. “Even when the cold water in the kitchen was back at 6pm. This seemed to turn everything else off including bathroom taps and the shower,” she told The Birmingham Tab.

Many residents were particularly frustrated because of the high price they are paying for the top quality university accommodation available. “Imagine paying the most on the vale and we get this,” Sam* said.

The Vale phone lines were down for part of Sunday and the early hours of Monday which couldn’t have been worse timing for the students affected by this problem who were frantically trying to contact maintenance at the time. Even when maintenance had been notified fully of the problem, it was slow to be fixed as one person was coming to all the flats affected one by one.

Although the water has been fully restored by now, many students are unhappy with the delay in getting it fixed, as they are paying the most to live on The Vale in Chamberlain Halls.

The Birmingham Tab has contacted the university for a comment.

*Some names have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals.

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