A fire broke out in the Mt. Clef Hall laundry room on Sept. 27 around 3 a.m., resulting in students having to evacuate the building. 

In the aftermath of the fire, there were no injuries or significant damage to the building.

“The fire alarm was set off due to smoke coming from the laundry room on the first floor 400s side of Mt. Clef Hall,” said Graduate Resident Director for Residence Life & Student Conduct/Mt. Clef Hall Supervisor Teresa McIntyre in an email interview. 

Director of Campus Safety at Cal Lutheran David Hilke said a comforter caught fire while in the dryer. The fire department responded and had the flames fully extinguished in about an hour. 

“Being that the laundry room was filling with smoke, it was best to have the fire department extinguish the fire. The fire department was also utilized to inspect the room, equipment, and to give the all clear that the building occupants may return,” Hilke said. 

First-year student Brooklyn Cox said the fire department’s response was necessary.

“I think it was needed just in case something did catch on fire other than the dryer and I think it took a good five or 10 minutes for them to get here,” said Cox.

Nobody was injured during the fire and, fortunately, the laundry room is still functional. However, according to McIntyre, two dryers are currently out of order, leaving only one washer and dryer working. 

“The laundry room is currently open for use with one operational washer and dryer. Still two dryers are currently out of order due to the incident. Cal Lutheran Facilities and Wash, the company that operates/repairs Cal Lutheran’s washers and dryers, have not yet provided an estimated timeline for repairing or replacing these dryers,” McIntyre said. 

According to Cox, Mt. Clef residents were evacuated from their dorms from 3 a.m. to 4 a.m. as a precautionary measure. Safety protocols required students to leave the building until the fire was sustained. 

McIntyre said the actual cause of the fire is believed to have been the dryer catching on fire, which is related to the lint catcher possibly not being cleaned out properly, causing the dryer to overheat and spark a fire. 

“I think somebody was drying their clothes and they forgot to clean the lint catcher, and there was too much lint and it caught fire,” said first-year student Journey Mason.

At the beginning of the school year, there were mandatory safety drills that students had to participate in, in order to prepare them in case of an actual emergency. McIntyre said these drills prepare students to be aware of how to respond to fire alarms, safely evacuate the building, and to ensure that everyone acts calmly and efficiently. 

“The fire safety measures we have in place include fire drills, posted signs in the laundry rooms, and more. Mt. Clef completed a mandatory fire drill at the beginning of this school year so that students could be aware of evacuation procedures,” McIntyre said.

McIntyre said there were signs posted in the laundry room to remind students to remove lint from the dryer, including written instructions. To prevent this from happening again in the future, MacIntyre said there will be additional signs added. 

“Additional signage has been posted in the laundry rooms to help make these instructions even clearer for residents,” McIntyre said. “We have also been proactive about communicating laundry procedures on our social media accounts to further emphasize the importance of these procedures.”