Building A evacuated after smoke detected

Smoke originating from a burning Styrofoam cup forced the evacuation of Building A around 2:30 a.m. last Friday. Students who noticed the smoke woke others in the building and notified their Residential Advisor, who then pulled a fire alarm.

"Three [Building A] residents came to my door and said that the hallway was filled with smoke," junior Building A Residential Advisor Christina Coleman said. "I went downstairs to the kitchen and then to the third floor to see where the smoke was coming from. When I couldn't find the source, I pulled the fire alarm to evacuate the building."

Although the fire alarm sounded during the early morning, residents treated the fire alarm seriously and evacuated the building as quickly as possible, according to Coleman.

"As soon as I got onto the hallway of the fourth floor, I smelled something burning and saw a light mist of smoke throughout the hallway," freshmen resident Yamuna Menon said. "As I was going down the steps, the smell got worse. By the time I got to the second floor, I couldn't even see more than a foot in front of me because the smoke was so thick."

When fire fighters and officers arrived on the scene and searched the area minutes later, the smoke had already spread evenly throughout the building, according to officials.

"I entered the building and attempted to locate the source of the smoke and odor but could not immediately determine where it was coming from," Reporting Officer Roderick Mitter said in a report. "Therefore, security checks of all rooms in the building were conducted by myself, Officer Hires and Lieutenant Rorke" in order to find the source.

The heavy smoke was apparently created when one of the second floor residents placed food enclosed in a Styrofoam cup in the microwave and forgot about the contents after setting the timer, according to the report. As fire fighters discovered the microwave with the evidence of badly burned food and liquid, the alarm was shut off, allowing students back into the building.

The resident who was responsible for the smoke declined to comment.

"This incident could have happened to anyone," freshman resident Ben Ouyang said. "We're lucky that it happened in a way because many people do not know that Styrofoam can burn in a microwave." With the exception of smoke damage, the building was not harmed.

Administrators and officers explained that the situation will have no effect on the future of microwave use in the residential halls and dismissed the incident as "accidental" and "not worth looking into."

"It's unfortunate that this happened, but it was an accident - a preventable accident," Assistant Director of Residential Life Clarybel Peguero said. "I am very happy how the RAs handled situation."

The incident raised questions on safety and microwaves use.

"When you put something in the microwave, take care and watch the contents so we don't have another situation like this," Security Investigator Dennis Rosemary said. "When receiving the rentable microfridge, inspect it before use to make sure that the timer and the other aspects function properly."

Students thought the situation was handled well.

"Even though I was asleep, people were knocking on my doors and telling me to get out," freshmen resident Yamini Krishnan said. "Then we got Christina and went outside."

"People on my floor did not evacuate until they made sure that everyone was out of their rooms," Menon explained. "Even then, they still double-checked rooms."

Both Building A residential advisors said they were happy with students' reactions.

"I liked how everyone was considerate since many were banging on the doors and trying to wake people up," senior Building A Residential Advisor Nikesh Seth said. "It showed the buddy system at its best.