Pastoral Center flooded after water main burst

by Diocese of Des Moines | September 8, 2026

On Saturday, August 29, the Diocese of Des Moines Pastoral Center at 600 Locust St in Des Moines was flooded.

The event occurred during the Bishop’s Celebration of Catholic Schools after a water main line on High Street outside of St. Ambrose Cathedral burst and water began to seep through the northwest entrance of the Pastoral Center and down the stairwell, into a packed Krause Hall.

As Bishop William Joensen introduced the celebration’s keynote speaker, some of the approximately 260 attendees noticed water creeping in through the back door and across the floor of the hall. Calls were made to the city’s water department, and Diocesan staff acted quickly to preserve as much as possible from water damage, which included the bottom of the papal quilt and secured it to ensure it did not get wet.

Contractors arrived and worked until 3 a.m. on Sunday, August 30, and returned later in the day to remove water from the basement floor and set up a system to remove humidity.

The Cathedral closed temporarily but reopened for regular services on Monday, August 31. No damage was reported from the Cathedral.

On Monday, a core group of experts that included Diocesan leadership and preservationists began to assess the damage to the building and other materials impacted by water damage. The group created a plan to assess and preserve important papers, artifacts, and records. This process is ongoing.

Diocesan staff at the Pastoral Center welcome prayers and are conscious that they are not the only building in the Diocese to experience water damage this summer. In addition to St. Catherine of Siena parish, which is recovering from the closure of its student center due to an activated fire suppression system in July, St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Shenandoah also suffered damage to its parish hall after severe rain flooded the downtown area.