I was there Monday night, on the fourth floor, when the Clemens' fire alarm started blaring, telling us to get out of the building. This, however, was not the most alarming thing about the event.
The first thing I heard was grumbling about another fire drill, but everyone filed into the stairwell without too much delay. The first incident that struck me as a possible problem was that with a stream of people pouring out the door, and a very audible alarm going off inside the building, there were still students trying to enter the building.
The next problem was, as soon as people were outside the door, they simply milled around right next to the entrances. A few people thought to step away from the building just in case, but most students stayed right there by the doors until firemen showed up and ordered them back.
By this point, three fire trucks had pulled up and several firemen were entering Clemens. Along came another student, who was off in his own world. Ignoring the crowd huddling in the rain, the blaring alarm and the stream of firefighters rushing into the building, this guy actually ambled into the lobby of Clemens, only to be removed promptly.
These incidents may not seem like much on their own, especially since the "fire" turned out to be some overcooked popcorn. However, if it was more serious, these actions would have resulted in a lot of injuries and possible death.
Ever try to go underground from Knox Hall to the Student Union right around the time when lectures let out? Now that's a fire hazard.
I swear I learned when I was in Kindergarten to get away from a building where the fire alarm sounded, but this lesson has apparently faded for many of my fellow students. The slow pace that people left the building could have been a problem, too, if the fire had been all that much bigger.
It appears that students and faculty need a refresher course in fire safety.
Earlier this semester I was involved in a dismal fire drill in Michael Hall on South Campus. Then, students milled about right in front of the door until officials came and ordered them to back up. People even started to file in before the building was cleared to enter.
Let's not wait until a real emergency causes unnecessary injuries or death. I hope we can do something now. It may be too much to train everyone on campus, but each floor of each building should have a minimum of one person who knows what he or she is doing and what others need to do during real emergency.
