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Lambda

Laurentian University's English Student Newspaper

Huntington University power outage leaves students without electricity, Wi-Fi

– Posted in News
Huntington University power outage

By Carolina Keen, Contributor

All classes at Huntington University are cancelled today, Thursday, February 6, 2018, after a power outage caused by the failure of the building’s privately owned equipment.

Students living in residence spent a night in the dark, with emergency lights only coming on early this morning. Emergency lights in stairwells have yet to be activated. Students still have heat and running water, but wifi is down.

“At first it was just a partial outage, so some rooms were fully functional, some had half the lights/outlets working, and some were completely out,” said Huntington resident Nolan Short. “The stoves still mostly worked, ovens didn’t, that sort of stuff. And then the electricians shut off the power entirely at about 2 am to look for the problem.”

Residence supervisors are looking out for students in the meantime.

“I was up late last night with a bunch of people and the res supervisor was with us. So she was keeping us up to date as best she could as things were happening. She was talking to the electricians and the hydro workers,” said Short. “And then this morning there are signs up telling people there is still heat/water, but no other power and we’re being told not to open fridges. So we haven’t had a ton of contact from admin/residence team, but the res sup is available to ask questions if we have them.”

According to Short, Huntington is providing students with a $50 stipend for food for the day.

Students in residence are wondering when they will hear from administration.

“I haven’t heard anything. An email with an update would be nice,” said Stephanie Pickering, another resident. 

“My biggest concern is that I have all my stuff in my fridge and the freezer and now it’s all going to go bad,” said Pickering. “It’s ridiculous because the power went out last night at 9 pm, and they still haven’t fixed it. And now they are saying it might not be back for another 12-24 hours.”

Though concerned about food spoilage, resident Natalie Antoine commented on the opportunity to bond with her floor mates.

“Overall, it hasn’t really affected me all that much,” Antoine said. “Yes, of course, showering in the dark sucks. Some people were up late last night writing assignments and such; the power disrupted that, and the lack of places to go on campus is an issue. People with midterms might be a little more concerned. [But] weirdly enough, it also created a sense of community on our floor. I guess no wifi and lights can do that when there’s nothing else to do.”

Meanwhile, Laurentian Residence has opened up their doors for students looking for a place to work and charge their electronics.

Students with classes scheduled to run in Huntington today received an email just before 8am this morning that read, “CLASS CANCELED DUE TO LOSS OF POWER AT HUNTINGTON UNIVERSITY.”

Communications student Carolyn Hatton said, “I’m unfamiliar with the whole situation, and how the power outage happened, but I’m somewhat upset because I really enjoy the class I had [scheduled] today. I’m curious as to why they didn’t just place us in a different classroom, maybe inside a class in Laurentian’s, Thornloe’s or University of Sudbury’s buildings.”

Though attempts to reach the Director of Academic Services and the Dean of Residence and Student Life were unsuccessful, Christine Catt, the Director of University Advancement explained that they don’t have additional information to pass along at this time.

Students and residents can keep an eye out for updates by following @HuntingtonUni and @SudburyHydro on Twitter. This article will continue to be updated as events unfold.

UPDATE: The Huntington University Twitter account announced that a backup generator has been delivered to campus. They are promising an update regarding when classes will resume “soon”.