Sept. 5, 2012
Students evacuated from one residence due to false alarm – investigation into incident underway
The Carleton University community is advised that at 12:48 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2012 a fire alarm was activated in the Lennox-Addington student residence resulting in the evacuation of the building.
The Campus Safety Services, local fire and EMS responders attended the scene.
During the emergency evacuation, three automatic door release mechanisms located on the west wing of the eighth floor failed: the magnetic locks are designed to open automatically once a fire alarm is activated. These specific locks control egress to the elevator lobby and stairwell areas.
The failure of the door lock mechanisms to release resulted in approximately 18 students being unable to exit the floor. Campus Safety Services officers were with the students within approximately six minutes and the locks were manually deactivated within approximately 10 minutes. While there have been numerous tests of the alarm system in the residence in the past year, this is the first time an automatic unlocking mechanism failed. Alarms in residences are tested on a monthly basis.
Next Steps
An investigation is underway to determine why the locking mechanisms failed to operate as required: other automatic locks in the building operated as expected. The fire panel and wiring for the magnetic locking devices have been repaired.
It would appear that a fire pull station was deliberately pulled causing the false alarm. A possible suspect has been identified and criminal charges may be laid.
Campus safety remains a top priority for Carleton University. The university maintains a zero tolerance policy towards individuals who abuse fire alarms and endanger the safety and security of the community.
The university apologizes to all of those students who were affected by the failure of the automatic unlocking mechanisms. Representatives of the Campus Safety Services are meeting with affected students today to review the incident, to listen to their concerns and to discuss safety issues. The incident will be used as another opportunity to educate students about what to do in an emergency situation and who to call.
Counselling support is also being arranged for those students who require it. Students are also being encouraged to seek out additional assistance and support from the Health Services department.
The safety of our students is a top priority. It is timely to remind the university community that maintaining a safe campus is a shared responsibility. All students, faculty and staff are requested to please co-operate during fire drills to make the campus safer for everyone. False alarms are always to be treated as real emergency events.
Anyone who has further information about this particular incident or has questions is encouraged to please contact the Campus Safety Services at (613) 520-2600 ext. 3612.
Sincerely,
Allan Burns
Director of Campus Safety Services