Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, January 16, 1994 TAG: 9401160120
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: E8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RAY COX STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RADFORD LENGTH: Medium
"My concern was the safety of the people who came into the building," said facility director Ron Downs, who made the decision to postpone in conjunction with Radford athletic director Chuck Taylor and Liberty athletic director Chuck Burch.
The Dedmon Center lost electricity and heat about 1 hour, 20 minutes before the scheduled 7:30 p.m. tip-off. Dim lights were restored by using supplemental generators, but ventilation fans used to support the arena's roof continued to blow icy air into the building. The outside temperature 30 minutes before game time was 3 degrees, according to the reading on a nearby bank clock.
The relationship between the power outage and the loss of heat, which is produced by an oil-fired furnace, was unclear, Downs said.
"The men from the physical plant will be working around the clock to get the heat restored," Downs said.
The estimated time required to warm the building was 90 minutes to two hours once the furnace was operating again, Taylor said.
But Downs said he was told there were power outages throughout the city.
"It could go out again at any minute," he said.
Although Taylor said he thought going head-to-head with televised NFL playoff games this afternoon might cut into the potential audience for the Big South Conference game between the Highlanders and Flames, it was the earliest date the schools could agree to make up the game.
"It's not our preference to play on Sundays, but you look at our schedules, and there's really not another date we could play," Burch said. "When we came into the conference, we said we would play on Sunday if there were circumstances out of our control that made it necessary."
Liberty, a Baptist-affiliated institution, has a policy that it will play on Sundays only if a game does not interfere with worship, Burch said.
by CNB