All residents return to Towers after fire

Dylan Pichnarcik / THE GATEPOST

By Dylan Pichnarcik

Associate Editor

All residents displaced from Corinne Hall Towers after a fire on Nov. 12 have reoccupied the building as of Nov. 19, said Robert Totino, vice president of Finance, Technology, and Administration. 

Twenty two students were temporarily relocated to Linsley Hall while water damage was assessed and repaired by 24 Restore, a disaster restoration service based in Easton, which arrived on campus at approximately 4 a.m. on Nov. 12 to begin assessing and servicing damage caused by the incident, according to Ryan Hacker, associate vice president of Facilities and Capital Projects. 

As of Nov. 19, all students were relocated back to Towers, according to Totino.

The fire, which started in room 671, was caused by a light fixture purchased by the student who occupied the room, according to Totino. 

Totino said the student who occupied room 671 has been permanently relocated to another room in Towers.  

The light fixture lacked the proper certification for approved electrical safety testing, which includes heat generation, according to Totino. 

The fire started in the early hours of Nov. 12, Totino said. Smoke within the room set off the building's emergency alarms, alerting occupants they needed to evacuate. 

He added the water pendant - a type of sprinkler system - activated shortly after, suppressing the flames. 

A water pendant is a sprinkler system that activates when enough heat in a space shatters a glass ampule, releasing water into an area, Totino said. 

Totino said the emergency response technology, including the sprinklers and fire alarms, worked as expected and were tested prior to the start of the academic year. 

Totino said he is thankful students “follow the guidelines that are presented by the Residence Life staff, to not cover [smoke detectors]. It’s important to keep those safety devices free and clear, and that was done here, which was appreciated.” 

According to Hacker, only the sprinkler system in room 671 activated, which limited the amount of water that spread throughout the building. 

Most of the water was contained to room 671 and the surrounding common areas on the sixth floor of Towers, he said. 

According to Hacker, when he surveyed the sixth floor on the night of the incident, approximately 1.5 to 2 inches of water had spread from room 671 to the common areas. 

Additionally, water had flowed down to levels five and four in between some of the walls made of drywall. 

Hacker said due to Towers being primarily constructed using concrete, the building acted as a “bathtub” and contained most of the water. 

Water that did travel down to the lower levels of the building came from areas in the drywall.

To combat the moisture stuck within the walls, 24 Restore has used industrial fans and has drilled holes into the bottom of walls within Towers to allow them to dry properly. 

Twenty four Restore has also completed moisture readings throughout the building to ensure any trapped water is removed to avoid the formation of mold, according to Hacker. 

Hacker said Towers are “in pretty good shape” and the building should be completely dried shortly. After 24 Restore completes its work in the building, additional repairs will be made to cover the holes drilled by 24 Restore with new rubber wall runners. 

Additionally, damage to the fire alarm panel was caused by the water, which was fixed a day after the incident, according to Hacker. 

Funds from the facilities budget will be used to pay for all repairs to the building. 

According to Totino, a final cost has not been determined but is expected to be between $100,000 and $200,000. 

On the night of the incident, Vice President of Student Affairs Meg Nowak Borrego was notified by the administrator on duty, Sara Gallegos, executive director of the Center for Student Experience and Career Development, at approximately 1 a.m. that a fire had occurred in Towers. 

After she was notified by Gallegos, she alerted members of the Executive Staff, including President Nancy Niemi; Assistant Vice President of Student Affairs Glenn Cochran; Deputy Chief of Police Martin Laughlin; Director of Residence Life & Housing Stephanie Crane; Hacker; and Totino.  

Shortly after they were notified, each administrator arrived on campus. 

Niemi said she believes it was her job to be “present and be supportive without being in the way. I am not the leader of that [emergency] response. The police are - the fire are.” 

She added it was her responsibility to “be a witness to it then and understand in real time what was happening structurally, but [also determine], was everybody safe? People were displaced - what’s going to happen? And then to hear the students and to give aid where I can.”  

Throughout the morning, members of the Executive Staff arrived on-site to support efforts in returning students to Towers or relocating them to Linsley Hall, according to Niemi. 

She said she, along with members of the Executive Staff, briefed students who were sent to Hemenway Hall to avoid the cold while the building's damage was surveyed. 

The Executive Staff remained on campus until students were readmitted to non-damaged areas of Towers. 

Niemi said while in Hemenway, she spoke with students and heard concerns about personal items, if classes would be canceled, and what the next steps were.

At 4:33 a.m., an email was sent to members of the FSU community on behalf of Niemi and Nowak Borrego, notifying people about the fire and asking faculty members to grant permission for Towers residents to miss class without penalty. 

The email read, “These students spent most of the night awake due to this ordeal, and we want to provide them with as much flexibility to rest and recover from the event.

“In moments like this, we are reminded of the strength and compassion that define the FSU community. We take care of one another - through challenges big and small - and it’s that sense of unity and care that makes our campus such a special place to call home.”

Additionally, students are encouraged by Nowak Borrego to take photographs of and inventory any items damaged by water and notify the Dean of Students office so a replacement or compensation can be given through the University’s Financial Crisis Response Team (FCRT). 

FCRT can grant students access to emergency grant funding provided the Office of the Dean of Students receives and verifies the requesting students’ information, according to Nowak Borrego.  

She added her office has received claims from students and is working with the FCRT manager and the University’s Business office to disperse funds to students. Additionally, some items have already been replaced by the Rams Resource Center.   

Nowak Borrego added some students have also utilized the loner-laptop program through the Office of the Vice President of Student Success due to water damage to their computers.  

Hours after the fire took place, students who occupied floors seven through 11 of Towers were readmitted to the building with instructions to avoid moving throughout the building, according to Niemi. 

Students who could not return to their rooms were told they would be housed in Linsley Hall or could make arrangements to stay elsewhere on campus or return home. 

Members of the Framingham State Police Department were stationed in the building to ensure students did not enter the sixth floor, she said. 

Students who were displaced and chose to take a room were later given keys and I.D. access to Linsley Hall and given the opportunity later in the day on Nov. 12 to retrieve personal items from Towers, according to Totino. 

As of Nov. 19, all students have moved out of Linsley Hall and have returned to Towers. 

Sophomore Kira James said she was doing laundry at the time of the fire and left her clothes in the third-floor kitchen of Towers as she was leaving the building. 

She said she called a friend who lived in the building to bring her a sweatshirt because of the low temperature. She waited for her friend inside until she was told it was an actual emergency.

James said she spent most of the night in the McCarthy Center so she could charge her phone. Another student who remained in Hemenway Hall sent her updates throughout the night. 

James said she understood the severity of the situation but believed there should have been emails sent to impacted students throughout the night to keep students updated. 

Senior Abrianna Ouellette said she housed another student in her room after she was readmitted to Towers. Her friend was unable to be admitted to Linsley until the Office of Residence Life opened for normal business hours. 

Junior Autumn Bailey, who stayed with Ouellette for the remainder of the evening, said she heard the fire alarms in the hallways going off and departed her room at the time of the fire. 

She said the fire alarms in her room are not functioning but she has put in a request with the Office of Facilities to have them repaired. 

She said at the time she was unsure if there was an actual emergency in the building but departed anyway. 

She said when keys were distributed for room assignments in Linsley she was not present, so she had to wait until the Office of Residence Life opened for the business day.  

Bailey said the conditions of Linsley were poor, citing the light fixture in her room was not functioning and there were no shower heads in the building. 

To combat this, Bailey showered in Miles Bibb Hall and borrowed a lamp from a friend. 

Bailey said she would not be filing a claim to replace belongings damaged by water. 

She said she believed the administration handled the event well and appreciated being excused from class. 

Sophomore Olivia Jansson said this was the first time she had experienced an incident like this on campus and initially did not think it was a real emergency.  

“I was really confused, because the fire alarm kind of talks to you through it. And I was like, ‘Oh, this must be a drill.’ And then we get out there. Obviously, it's an intense situation, so we didn't know that it was a real fire until we're out there. So I felt really ill prepared and confused and kind of scared, to be honest. It was kind of just a crazy first experience here,” she said. 

Senior Jada James said she was alerted about the fire after hearing screams come from the hallways.

She said she believes the University responded well to the incident. “I do feel like there should have been more communication for residents in Towers. 

“There were a lot of people who stayed in the building and slept through the alarm, not knowing about the fire until the morning. I do think it is a little scary because God forbid things take a more serious turn, there should have been a better route in ensuring everyone was outside and alarming people of an actual danger.”