ALEX BUCKNAM
Editor in Chief
Police car outside of University Commons. Photo by ALEX BUCKNAM| Editor in Chief
At 9:24 a.m., students received phone calls and emails reporting a gas leak near Jewett Hall.
At 10:13 a.m., building alarms stopped and emergency service vehicles began leaving the area.
At 10:17 a.m., campus officials notified students that they could safely return to the affected areas.
Officials have not yet identified the cause of the gas leak.
When the gas leak occurred, construction workers called University Police, following standard protocol. When workers struggled to shut off the gas valve, they called National Fuel for assistance.
University Police ordered Mason Hall, the Williams Center and Reed Library to evacuate.
Sam Behrens, a freshman student, was in the area when the gas leak started.
“I just left Mason [Hall] and heard the Science Center fire alarm go off,” Behrens said. Behrens added that University Police were then heading toward Mason Hall and Jewett Hall.
The Science Center fire alarm this morning was unrelated to the gas leak. Officials did not order the Science Center to evacuate, with relation to the gas leak.
University Police arrived at the scene before officials sent a mass notification.
“My friend tried to walk towards Mason Hall and got told to walk the other way,” Behrens said. “At that time, we didn’t know what was happening.”
National Fuel establishes a 330-foot radius around a gas leak, requiring buildings within that area to evacuate. Markus Kessler, director of facilities planning, explained the policy.
“Just like if there’s a gas leak in your home, houses within 330 feet have to evacuate,” Kessler said.
National Fuel uses the 330-foot radius to prevent potential dangers associated with gas leaks, according to the company.
Officials have not yet explained why they excluded McEwen from the original evacuation list.
Roslin Smith, chair of the Communication Department, said she saw the notification 28 minutes late. She was shocked when she saw that officials had not included McEwen on the list.
“I immediately called my secretary and told her to leave the building,” Smith said. “I didn’t know who was in the building, but then I found out the alarm wasn’t going off.”
Smith called University Police to ask why the alarm had not sounded. The officer reportedly told her that officials had already activated the alarm, but Smith disputed that claim.
“My secretary didn’t know,” Smith said.
Smith raised major concerns about the workers in the café inside McEwen, noting that the main worker did not have a phone. She also expressed concern for student media organizations Fredonia Radio Systems and WNYF-TV, which operate stations inside McEwen.
“They could of had their headphones on and could have missed the call,” Roslin Stated.
Construction has resumed on Jewett Hall.
The Leader will provide more information when it becomes available.