Grated metal covers guard the man holes which are visible nearly all over campus, including the sidewalks and Terrell Mall at Washington State University’s Pullman campus.
The underground layer consisting of dozens of steam tunnels that heat WSU’s building and sidewalks run under all of campus lures some curious students with a sense of adventure to confirm for themselves that the tunnels can be accessed with stealth and determination.
Fully aware of the harsh consequences that include expulsion, a senior WSU student who requested anonymity, decided to take his chances in order to explore the unknown underground.
“I heard about the tunnels my freshman year when I lived in the dorms and wanted to see underground for myself,” said the senior. “We got in through an unchained manhole near the Owen Science Library. There weren’t any signs posted not to enter.”
A few of WSU students who attended from 1994 to 1997 started an underground exploration group calling themselves MoleNet. The students broke into two separate groups; one above ground and the other below. Over their time spent at WSU they succeeded in mapping out the underground tunnels. The map illuminates tunnel paths, crawlspace and points of interest. Included in the points of interest are a bomb shelter below Bohler gym and a “pet cemetery” near College hall.
As alluring as the unknown underground world is, anyone who is willing to take the risk needs to be cautious and aware of the potential dangers.
A WSU graduate, Nick Lyon, went underground once during his freshman year with friends. His exploration was inspired by a rumor he had heard about students who lived in Gannon and Goldsworthy. The rumored students allegedly accessed a tunnel path near their dorm in which led them to the men’s locker room in Beasly Coliseum. Once the students popped up in the locker room they found some basketballs and proceeded to play on WSU’s basketball court.
“It was a giant underground system, not just one path,” said Lyon reflecting on his own experience. “We went down a man hole on the road north of Hillside dinning. The lighting sucked so we had to use our cell phones to not hit our heads on any pipes.”
Poor lighting, small crawl spaces and impeding pipes are a few of the known dangers of the unknown areas.
Graduating in a few days, senior Steven Houston contemplated giving into to his desire to explore the network of tunnels but withheld due to the harsh repercussions of getting caught.
“I have never gone underground, however I want to so badly,” said Houston. “I am so scared to get expelled considering I am graduating in a couple days and I don’t want anything to jeopardize that!”
Sources:
Nick Lyon (509) 385-9411
Steven Houston (360) 326-5416 *Face-to-face interview
http://silicon-arcana.com/molenet/
