February 12, 1999 Calvin College Chimes

Flaming C.J. log cause of rude awakening in BHT By John J. Vander Meer Managing Editor photo by Swanson In the past month, three residence hall fire alarms were pulled in the early morning hours. Most students were sleeping when they heard the blaring noise of the fire alarm at 3:00 Tuesday morning. But all the residents of the Bolt/Heyns/Timmer Residence Hall are becoming more accustomed to being woken up in the early morning hours to the wailing sound of their fire alarms. As the fumes billowed out of the community bathroom on second Bolt, Andrew Robinson, a sophomore who lives on second, was leaving his room when he smelled the smoke. “I came out of my room to go for a smoke and that’s just what I smelled,” said Robinson. He then alerted the RA of his floor, Cory Hugen, and pulled the fire alarm. Kurt Steiner, another second Bolt resident squelched the small notebook-fire that had been started in the bathtub. This is the third early-morning fire alarm that has been pulled in the last month in Calvin residence halls. The previous Monday, students in BHT woke up to the very same sound at 4:00 a.m. On Jan. 26, the Schultze/Eldersveld Residence Hall was awakened at 6:15 a.m. According to the Campus Safety report, the fire alarm was set off as a result of a cigarette being used to light a book of matches. According to BHT students who were awakened during the fire alarm on Monday of last week, the words “F– Calvin 4:20” were written in soap on the outer door of the lobby. Some students say that the message and the fire alarm are connected. However, neither that assertion nor the people involved have been discovered. Although Campus Safety has no leads as to who is pulling the fire alarms, or who started the fire Tuesday morning, some students worry that the recurring pattern of the pulling of fire alarms could be causing a trend in the dorms. “It worries me that if it keeps happening, when there is a real serious fire, people wonít come out when the alarm sounds,” said freshman Melissa Cable, who was working on her homework in the Bolt basement when the alarm sounded. Adrian Sybenga, an officer for Campus Safety said that in a situation such as this, they principally rely on help from student informants to identify the assailants involved.“The only way we can do something about this kind of thing is if someone saw the people involved, or if they [the people involved] brag about it to one of their friends and that person informs us.” Matt Hopp, the Campus Safety supervisor on the scene, and another one of the three officers called to the scene said, “in general pranks [in Calvin residence halls] have escalated into more significant crimes.” Another student, Jeff DeKock, a sophomore on third Bolt, recalled a time last year when there was a similar problem. “I remember last year during exams week, between RVD and BV there were a number of [fire alarms pulled].” DeKock added that, “It's has been pretty mild except for this week and last week. Youíd think that the fine would stop people, but unless someone gets caught itís going to keep happening.” The Residence Life Office has offered a $250 reward for any information that could lead to the apprehension of people involved, and will levy a $500 fine on anyone involved in the pulling of a fire alarm. Many students are frustrated about being woken up in the early morning hours as a result of childish pranks. Freshman Belinda Messe said that if she knew who was responsible, she “would go and wake them up at 3:00 in the morning.” A frustrated Bolt resident, Daryl Klyn-Hesselink concluded, “At 4:00 in the morning, the fire alarm says it best - bleep, bleep, bleep.”