MEDIA CONTACT: Mark E. Brady, Chief Spokesperson, 240-508-7930
Student residents of Denton Hall at the University of Maryland got an early wake-up alarm this morning. It was a “fire alarm” that awakened students at about 4:20 am, Thursday, March 10, 2011. The buildings alarm system was activated by a student to warn other occupants of a fire in the 9-story dormitory. A manual pull fire alarm was activated and the entire building was evacuated.
An electrical component, possibly some type of charging unit, ignited a fire on a desk in a 5th floor room. Firefighters from College Park Fire/EMS Station #812 and other surrounding communities responded to the scene . Upon arrival they found a relatively small fire was already out but smoke had filled the 5th floor hallway on the west side of the building. Firefighters ensured the fire was extinguished and ventilated the smoke from the building. Students were allowed to re-enter the building after being evacuated for about 15 minutes. Firefighters cleared the scene around 5:00 am. The fire is classified as “accidental” and fire loss is estimated at $100.
One female Denton Hall resident was transported to an area hospital from the scene for an unknown illness. It is not known if her illness was related to the fire and evacuation.
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