South Campus Commons 5 and 6
Several South Campus Commons buildings failed fire alarm safety drills last week because some residents were slow to leave the buildings and others failed to evacuate altogether.
The Fire Marshal’s office reported several students were looking out their apartment windows during the recent drills — a practice that could spell trouble for residents if the office or Resident Life can identify them. Students who ignore safety drills can be brought before the Resident Life Judicial Board, said Amber Dees, South Campus Commons community director. However, the benefit of complying with practice runs comes from learning proper procedure, not avoiding punishment, officials said.
“Fire drills help our students prepare for that one unfortunate day that a fire could break out in their building,” Resident Life Director Deb Grandner wrote in an email. “It’s important to never assume that a fire alarm is a false alarm. Evacuate every time.”
During recent tests, a member of the Fire Marshal’s office “went to different doors after the drill and confirmed residents were still in their apartments and had not evacuated,” said Luisa Ferreira, an assistant fire marshal.
Officials declined to say which buildings failed the drills until the office finishes conducting fire drills in the community and sends a final report to Resident Life officials.
“I wouldn’t say buildings failing fire drills is ‘rare,’ but it’s something close to that,” Dees said. “Generally, students are well-educated and know the expectations for drills.”
Typical reasons why a building may fail include residents leaving in a disorderly or extremely slow manner, re-entering the building without permission or failing to evacuate when the alarm sounds, Dees said.
Officials may choose to schedule another drill or, as South Campus Commons management did, send out an email stating the building failed and reminding residents of the importance of following drill procedures.
One Commons resident said she had never personally been in her apartment during a drill, but had heard students complain about the inconvenience.
“It’s really cold outside, so people just want to stay in their apartments,” junior biology major Sheenali Naik said. “But the alarms are really loud, so I would think people would want to get out of their rooms just to get away from the noise.”
Because a fire drill can be disruptive, many residents also struggle to “take it seriously,” freshman civil engineering major Doris Ihejirika said.
“It’s just if there’s no smoke, and I don’t think there’s a fire or I’m in any danger, I think ‘Eh, it’s just a drill,’” Ihejirika said. “I know that’s probably not a good thing, though.”
However, if residents and faculty don’t participate in drills, they may not understand proper procedures in the event of an emergency and could endanger themselves or others, Ferreira said. For example, while students typically exit buildings through the main lobby, they are expected to exit through doors in the stairwells during emergencies to prevent crowding.
Front desk staff members are also expected to follow procedure by calling the campus emergency number, 301-405-3333 or #3333, and the Security Operations Center during drills.
“Some of the largest fires have been in student residences like Commons, Courtyards and other apartments with kitchens because of students cooking, especially with grease,” Ferreira said.
Last month, a small grease fire broke out in St. Mary’s Hall, and a Courtyards building experienced another small cooking-related fire in October, she said.
“It’s important for everyone to practice, ” Ferreira said. “You never know when a fire might start.”
