In an effort to prevent fires in residence buildings and to insure students are aware of health codes and exiting drills, the Office of Residential Operations will conduct fire safety inspections this week in all dormitories, special affinity houses and Greek houses.
Director of Operations Woody Eckels said a fire in August in Lord Hall demonstrated the need for the fire safety week because it caused about $8,000 in damages and six to eight people remained asleep in the building despite alarms. One woman, whom fire fighters discovered asleep in the room across the hall, said she heard the alarm, but figured it was a drill and went back to sleep, according to Eckels.
The fire drills, which will sound off between 7 and 10 p.m. today through Wednesday, are designed to alert students living in residence hall and special affinity housing to the sound of the alarm, what it means and to "give them the experience of leaving," Eckels said.
The health code inspections, which Assistant Director of Operations Bernard Haskell said he will conduct in the 26 Greek houses by appointment between today and Thursday, will make sure students living there follow the fire safety regulations set forth by Minimum Standards, a quarterly inspection of each Greek organization that began in the mid-1980s to regulate the safety of the houses.
"This is meant to be education," Eckels said about the drills and inspections. The office gives students two weeks from the inspection to show they fixed the infraction or turned in the extension cord, he said.
Haskell said the most common infractions -- for which the individuals or houses are charged $100 each -- are "illegal" appliances, like microwaves, hot pots, space heaters or toasters, and extension cords, which must be three-pronged and have a one-to-one linkage.
Haskell said a good way to determine if an appliance is illegal is if it is "glowing." He said one of the biggest dangers are halogen lamps, even though a disclaimer on their packaging legalizes them. Halogen lamps exert between 350 and 500 watts, as opposed to an average desk lamp, which uses about 80 watts, he said.
Eckels said the College has started replacing low-wattage ceiling lights in the residence halls so students are not forced to use halogen lamps to brighten their rooms sufficiently. But the process, which has thus far included renovations in New Hampshire Hall and the Fayerweathers and Choates clusters of dormitories, will not be complete for another five to 10 years.
Eckels, who conducted searches in the Greek system before Haskell took over in 1992, said the largest fine he has collected in one quarter is $2,400, which included up to $800 from some individual houses.
He said he sometimes lets the houses barter down their fines by purchasing the correct extension cords or deciding to make individuals pay for the infractions rather than the house, which enforces the sense of responsibility.
Because the Coed Fraternity Sorority houses are not frequented by College-employed janitors, as are the residence halls, Eckels said they are "more out on their own," which brings in the need for Minimum Standards fire and health inspections.
Haskell added that the College can regulate the houses it owns a slight bit more because janitors clean the rooms during interim breaks. But, because the turn over of residents is so frequent in CFS houses, there is a termly need for safety education.
Included in the codes for CFS houses is the insistence "all means of egress are clear, common areas are clean, there are smoke detectors in every room [and] sprinkler pipes are free of debris," Haskell said.
Last summer, a room in the Delta Gamma sorority house on College Street incurred more than $10,000 in damages due to smoke and water. Though the cause of the fire remains undetermined, Eckels said he found an illegal extension cord -- that was unplugged -- beneath the bed.
The residents of the room, like other students whose rooms are damaged in a fire, had to pay for damages to their personal property. If a student is determined responsible for the fire, that person must also pay for the damages incurred by the room or other persons' property, Eckels said.
Only CFS houses receive room inspections, dormitories do not. About five years ago, the fire department, which is a government agency, stopped searching students' rooms during fire drills because of the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits illegal searches and seizures.
Eckels said the College could institute a room search conducted by Safety and Security, but is currently understaffed for such a task.
