The Information Commons (I.C.) was temporarily closed after torrential rain caused flooding in the building.
Hundreds of students studying for their exams had to move elsewhere after staff closed the 24-hour library on Wednesday, June 10, over concerns that the water could have damaged the electrical systems.
In a statement to all students on Wednesday, Chris Sexton, the Director of Corporate Information and Computing Services, said: “Due to very heavy rain which has caused flooding, the Information Commons has been closed.
“It will remain closed throughout the night and we hope to open it tomorrow, but as yet we do not know what time as there are electrical circuits which need to be checked. We apologise for the inconvenience this will cause.”
Second year Journalism student, Imogen Fay Child, saw smoke coming from bulbs in the I.C. after rain water got into the lights.
She said: “The rain was coming through the ceiling and sparking the electricity in the light system. I was revising for my final exam, but the closure has forced me to come home and study”.
Dual honours student, Tom Hastings, said: “I’m lucky, because I had my last exam on Wednesday. It must be very frustrating for everyone needing to use the I.C. with exams. However, nature and the weather can’t be helped.
“Lots of places flooded around Sheffield today, so it’s not really the University’s fault.”
Other buildings around the University were affected by the heavy rain, including Western Bank library, where Stacks 1-3 were closed due to flooding and Bartholomew House, where the I.T. centre has also had to close.
The Sir Robert Hadfield building and the Alfred Denny building were also closed.
In the Union, water entered the auditorium, Interval and Bar One.
Third year student, Stephen Findlay, said: “The rain was coming through the ceiling by the toilets in Interval. You could see cables hanging out of the ceiling with water running off them.”
The flooding has caused disruptions to the Sheffield transport network and has forced local schools to close.
The Met Office issued a severe weather warning for Sheffield.
Between 20-30mm of rain fell on the city in downpours that continued until the early hours of Thursday.