On Wednesday evening, New Apartment (New Apt) residents were (metaphorically) shocked by a sudden power outage. In a campus-wide message, the Office of Campus Safety alerted students of downed trees and power lines. Smells of burnt rubber and smoke loomed as the Collegian approached the New Apts to interview residents. Cameron Cretaro ’28 woke up from his nap to an abnormally quiet North Campus: “I went to turn the lights on and it didn’t happen. I was wondering why it was so quiet,” he said. Mays Gunderson ’27 was intrigued by the commotion. “I was just sitting in my room and I heard a big crash outside and then the power went out. … I thought it was really cool. I went up, like pretty close to it, and then the fire department came,” he said. American Electric Power and the Mount Vernon Fire Department arrived on the scene shortly after the incident. 

Many students learned of the power outage over dinner, as friends texted each other photos and videos of the electrical fire or posted about the incident on Yik Yak. The mood in Peirce Hall was a mixture of frustration at the inconvenience and titillation at the spectacle.

At 9:06 p.m. on Wednesday, with the power still out, the Office of Residential Life sent an email to all New Apt residents informing them that restoration work would likely continue until Thursday morning. Due to the cold weather, residents were given the option to spend the night in Meadow Lane (Mods) housing. Students were encouraged to take only the essentials and to contact Campus Safety for transportation assistance.

Editor-in-Chief Dorothy Yaqub contributed to reporting.