Blog 9: Dorm Leak

This week had its major ups and downs. I was just recovering from a cold and getting ready to head back to Hawaii for my sister’s graduation when something completely unexpected happened in my dorm room.

I was lying on my bed when I started to hear what sounded like rain—inside the room. At first, I thought it was odd how loud it was, but I didn’t think too much of it. A few seconds later, I heard a sudden and steady downpour. I got up and realized water was leaking everywhere. The shower, the toilet, even the ceiling—almost the entire front half of the room was covered in water. I was completely stunned.

To make matters worse, my roommate Kristy wasn’t there—she had gone to Singapore, while I stayed behind to rest and get ready to fly home. So I was dealing with everything by myself. I grabbed our trash cans and lined them with trash bags, doing my best to collect the dripping water. I honestly hoped it was just water, because I didn’t even want to imagine any other possibilities.

Then, of course, the power went out. I was standing in the dark, using my phone flashlight, completely overwhelmed, trying to assess how bad things were and emptying out trash cans as quickly as I could. At the same time, I was trying to protect anything important from getting damaged.

Since Kristy wasn’t there, I ended up packing most of her stuff into her luggage to keep it safe and ready to move. While the water kept leaking around me, I was frantically zipping up suitcases and trying to make sure none of her belongings got wet. It honestly felt like something out of a disaster movie.

Eventually, dorm staff came and moved me into a temporary room. I packed up as much as I could—my stuff and Kristy’s—and carried everything over in the middle of the chaos. The whole situation felt unreal. I was sick, tired, and completely unsure of what was even causing the leak. No one had warned us, and it all happened so suddenly.

Even now, I still don’t know what caused it. All I know is that it was one of the most stressful, exhausting nights I’ve had since coming to Korea. But somehow, I managed. I stayed calm, protected our things, and got everything moved in time. Definitely one of those “I survived” moments I’ll never forget.

For confidentiality and privacy reasons, I will not be posting any pictures or videos of the leak.