MISSOULA – Poverello Center leaders still aren’t sure what caused a pair of damaging sewage floods in the homeless shelter a few weeks ago.
The shelter experienced its first flood in early May, with the sewage overflow impacting the kitchen and the men’s dormitory.
The center paid for extensive repairs and was about to re-open the dorm late last month when a second flood ruined most of the cleanup.
However, Executive Director Amy Allison Thompson says the procedures that were put in place after the first flood helped to limit the damage to the kitchen, which was able to re-open in a few days.
The men’s dorm remains closed this week, although all other sections of the Poverello Center are operating.
Thompson says managers don’t want to make repairs to the men’s dorm until they can figure out what caused the two floods — and that means some re-engineering of the building’s plumbing system.
Thompson says that event with the closure of the men’s dorm, the Poverello can still house up to 150 guests a night and is able to serve 400-to-600 meals a day.
