Charlo replaces water-damaged gym floor

The floor in Charlo School’s old gym, damaged after a pipe burst beneath it last month, will be replaced according to Superintendent Steve Love.

The leak was discovered Oct. 2 by a school custodian. Water was shut off for the entire facility, which includes two gymnasiums, and a crew discovered that a water pipe running beneath the floor of the old gym had ruptured, perhaps due to settling between the old section and the newer one.

Although water didn’t flow directly over the gym floor, it did course through the stringers that support it, causing the floor to buckle.

In his weekly newsletter, Love said the old gym floor is being completely removed, including the stringers, and the concrete substructure has sensors drilled into it to measure moisture.

“Once those readings are acceptable to the flooring company and the new wood has had time to acclimate, they will begin installing the new floor,” Love wrote.

The district must pay a deductible of $2,500, he said, and the insurance company will cover the balance of the replacement cost, which is estimated at $268,000.  

"If everything goes well we hope to back on it in early January," Love said.