Maintenance Men Scurry to Combat Backwash of Hour Deluge Yesterday

The hour's torrential rain which ripped through Cambridge yesterday afternoon between 3:30 and 4:30 o'clock had the University maintenance men hustling, but quick action with the mop, pall, and pump kept damage from backed-up drains and flooded cellars to a minimum.

Cecil Roberts, superintendent of construction, reported late yesterday from his office on 917 Memorial Drive that the Maintenance Department had received many calls from all parts of the University and that a "good number" of plumbers and laborers had been sent out to cope with rising waters.

Converse Needs Help

Both the Converse laboratories and the University Printing Office in Randall Hall called for help during the afternoon, with backed-up drains leaving large pools of water in the basements. No damage was reported at either location.

Three Houses--Adams, Leverett, and Kirkland--reported water in the cellars, which caused little damage. At Kirkland there was water "all over the place," according to the janitor, but mops and pails made short work of the deluge. All three basements were dry or drying rapidly by suppertime.

.9 Inches

Yesterday's downpour put .9 inches of water into the Boston Weather Bureau's rain guage, but did not break any records, according to the Bureau statistician. On July 15, 2.54 inches of rain fell in a similar two-hour period.