The Stadium Bowl in Tacoma, Wash., was so severely flooded by storm water that the stadium was ordered closed until February.
Tacoma Environmental Services report that .42 inches of rain fell in just 10 minutes on Saturday, and that overwhelmed the city’s drainage system. According to KOMO News, the amount of rain that fell is double the amount that the drainage system can handle.
The stadium is carved near the base of a hillside, and when the drainage system backed up, storm water poured into the bowl.
“It was ridiculous,” student Nick Ford said. “I couldn’t believe there was so much water. It looked like a tsunami.”
The water was flowing down the stairs and settled in the bowl, covering the field in water several feet deep.
You can view video of the aftermath below:
Though the stadium is severely flooded, the Tacoma School District said damage to the field can be cleaned up fairly easily. The damage to the hillside, both above and below the stadium is what is causing the lengthy closure.
Water washed away dirt underneath the stairway and seating area, and dirt from the eastern edge of the stadium caused a mudslide.
City and school district officials will be meeting to discuss plans to prevent a similar situation happening again. Current drain pipes may have to be replaced with ones that are twice as large.
While repairs are made, football and soccer games for Mount Tahoma and Wilson High Schools, who use the Stadium Bowl as a home field, will have to be played elsewhere. Both schools will reportedly shift home games to the Lincoln Bowl at Mount Tahoma High School.
