Most University students have heard rumors about tunnels beneath the older parts of campus like the Quad. These rumors suggest they were built to be nuclear fallout shelters during the Cold War, or for former governor Huey P. Long to use as a shortcut to football games from the Capitol. Their purpose is actually much simpler.

While it is true the tunnels date back almost 100 years, around the time Long was governor, they were simply built to distribute steam to and from campus buildings. They were not built for transportation. The tunnels also vary in size, making it difficult for anyone to travel through comfortably.

Interim Executive Director for Facility Services Laura Morrow explained how unsuited the tunnels are for transportation and how cautious the maintenance crew is when entering. Critters, bugs and spiders litter nearly every part of the dark tunnels, and the low ceilings force workers to slouch, crouch or even crawl to get through some parts.

Even though they are still almost 100 years old, they are still used today for electrical lines, communications lines, chilled water and steam. Facility Services does not foresee the tunnels becoming obsolete just because they are old.

“[The tunnels] work for us,” Morrow said. “We have limited funds for the University, so we would never redo it just to redo it, because they do work.” 

But some students, of course, still feel the need to investigate the mystery themselves.

One anonymous Reddit user named ThrowawayForNoSleep detailed his trip into the tunnels six years ago on a Reddit post. He said he and his friends entered the tunnels through an unlocked entrance near the on-campus Subway restaurant. According to the post, their trip was unexciting at first. They were a little afraid they might find homeless people down there, but soon realized that the steam pipes made it extremely hot and that there was no way anyone could live down there.

ThrowawayForNoSleep’s story then took a spooky turn. According to the post, when they were deep into the tunnel system, they found five stick figures painted on the wall. Each figure resembling one of the explorers in his group. They ignored it and continued walking.

Later in their trek, they came upon the same set of stick figures, but this time X’s were painted over the eyes. Upon closer inspection, they realized it was freshly painted, and they bolted from the scene.

“Something was down there with us,” ThrowawayForNoSleep wrote.

While Facility Services representatives were quick to laugh at the myths surrounding the tunnels, they did emphasize how dangerous the tunnels can be. Morrow stressed that students could be severely burned by the steam pipes, or electrocuted by the high-voltage equipment. And most dangerous of all, she said there is a significant risk of students getting trapped. The long, winding tunnels are labyrinthine in nature, and Morrow said that even if a student happens to find an unlocked entrance, it is unlikely they will find an unlocked exit.

“There’s just always been an attempt to romanticize,” said Tammy Millican, executive director for facility and property oversight. “Every couple years someone will come and ask [about the tunnel myths], but really it’s just a mechanical area. It’s dangerous, and people should not go down into the tunnels.”