A huge, custom-made borer has started drilling a 640-foot-long tunnel under Bascom Hill to carry utilities. The borer, 11 feet in diameter, was lowered into a reinforced earthen pit between South Hall and the Law Building, where it runs on hydraulic tracks installed there, filling carts with earth as it excavates the face of the tunnel. The tunnel will lead from the northeast corner of Bascom Hall underneath Bascom Hill to South Hall, and then to Lathrop Hall, and it will accommodate pipes and lines carrying steam, chilled water, condensate, compressed air, and electric lighting. It replaces a century-old, smaller tunnel that was dug by hand.
