Four of Harvard's river houses were without water for most of yesterday morning, forcing students to forgo their regular morning routines for a day of confused cleaning schedules and disheveled appearances.

Residents of Winthrop and Lowell as well as parts of Quincy and Leverett Houses experienced a water loss until mid-afternoon.

One student, who requested anonymity, said she wrote a note to her roommate which read: "Warning: The toilet does not flush. I found out too late."

Lowell resident Sean H. Whalen '95 said he was one of a lucky few in the House who were able to shower yesterday morning. But as an assistant to Lowell superintendent, he had to deal with the fallout of the water shortage--a flood of student complaints.

Whalen said he was overrun with phone calls from students complaining about their showers, sinks and toilets.

"Some of the facilities are working, some aren't. We've had plumbers in all morning," Whalen said.

According to Michael Nicoloro of the Cambridge Water Department, the water was shut off as part of a sewer separation project on Mt. Auburn Street, which had been proceeding throughout the summer.

"The shutdown had been planned, and the area was notified," Nicoloro said. "When the work began, the valves that were supposed to hold were actually found to be leaking. Therefore, we had to extend the shutdown area."

The original area of shutdown included the region along Mt. Auburn Street from Plympton Street to John F. Kennedy Street, which would not have affected Harvard University.

But shortly after it began at 3:00 a.m., the shutdown had to be extended to Mill Street, Nicoloro said.

When the valves were tested before beginning construction, no problems were revealed, he said.

The leaks may be attributed to the age of the valves, which are between 90 and 100 years old, said Bill Schellback, manager of distribution for the Cambridge Water Department.

According to Schellback, Harvard operations was notified that the extended shutdown would affect the University. "We would like to inform everyone ahead of time, but when an emergency arises we try to deal with it the best way we can," he said.

But Associate Director for Engineering and Utilities Harold A. Hawkes said no one informed him that Harvard would be affected by the shutdown.

Even though the Cambridge Water Company turned the water back on at 7:05 a.m., the water did not reach full pressure in the Houses until many hours later.

Scores of students were forced to take showers and brush their teeth elsewhere. Most said they were a bit annoyed, but some found humor in their alternative attempts to maintain hygiene.