A UB Alert was sent out at 4:45 p.m. Tuesday reporting a dumpster fire in the Ellicott Tunnel near Wilkeson Quadrangle. Wilkeson, the Academic Center and part of Spaulding were evacuated.
No one was injured and only the dumpster sustained damage, according to UPD Lt. K.Will. The fire was extinguished by 5:12 p.m., and students returned to their dorms around 5:20 p.m.
While the evacuation was orderly, students were given little direction on where to congregate. Evacuees milled around Wilkeson Quad’s parking lot before paraprofessional staff directed them to stand further from the building. Students taking online classes struggled to pay attention and take notes while sitting on the curb. Approximately 30 students were reprimanded for remaining on Ellicott’s terrace to watch light smoke waft out from the tunnel.
Freshman Olivia Kot was in Wilkeson’s lounge when she got a notification that there was a fire.
“I was in the lounge doing chemistry homework,” Kot said. “I thought it was a drill. At first our fire alarm in the lounge wasn’t going off. So we were just sitting there until we got an email. That's when we got up to leave. Then [the fire alarms] started going off.”
The commotion woke Kendalyn Lusk, a freshman biotechnology major, from her nap.
“I didn’t know what was going on… I still don’t know what’s happening!” Lusk said while waiting to re-enter her Wilkeson dorm room.
This is a developing story.
Grant Ashley is a senior news/features editor and can be reached at grant.ashley@ubspectrum.com
Julie Frey is an assistant news/features editor and can be reached at julie.frey@ubspectrum.com
Grant Ashley is the editor in chief of The Spectrum. He's also reported for NPR, WBFO, WIVB and The Buffalo News. He enjoys taking long bike rides, baking with his parents’ ingredients and recreating Bob Ross paintings in crayon. He can be found on the platform formerly known as Twitter at @Grantrashley.
Julie Frey is a senior news/features editor at The Spectrum. She is a political science and environmental studies double major. She enjoys theorizing about Taylor Swift, the color yellow and reading books that make her cry. She can be found on Twitter @juliannefrey.
Photo: Ryan Hagen | UB Athletics
