By: Christal Gaines-Emory, Nicholas Broadhead and Maya-Claire Glenn
Hundreds of students streamed out of campus buildings Tuesday at around 5:30 p.m. after CSULB canceled classes as workers performed emergency repairs.
According to University Police Chief John Brockie, the power outage was a result of the power company’s mechanical failure. Southern California Edison Company contacted the university minutes before the outage occurred to alert them of the mechanical failure.
“We were told just a few minutes before the outage occurred that this would happen,” Brockie said. “This is a very unique situation. Hopefully this will be corrected soon.”
CSULB President Jane Close Conoley stated in an interview with the Daily Forty-Niner that she was off-campus when the outage occurred and received a call about the situation.
After being called into a an emergency meeting, she made the decision to cancel classes for the night.
“We can’t take the chance of somebody being hurt on campus or someone being stuck on an elevator,” Conoley said.
She expressed her frustration at the power outage taking place at the beginning of the semester, and stated that it was “a mess.”
At 5:58 p.m., BeachALERT notified students that all evening classes were cancelled.
“Due to the power outage, all classes are cancelled for this evening. Please leave campus calmly and safely,” the message read.
The power outage affected all campus buildings, including the Hillside and Parkside dorms.
According to Hillside Honors resident Birdie Langendorf, she was caught off-guard by the power outage.
“I’m feeling a little annoyed,” she said. “It’s not the worst of happenings, but it is really hot.”
Other students also felt frustrated at the situation due to the heat, including another Hillside Honors resident Kathryn Woest.
“It doesn’t seem like this outage was planned in advance, so the university is doing the best that they can,” Woest said.
On the CSULB official Instagram page, an alert was posted that urged students to leave campus.
The post read, “Unless you live in residence halls, please leave or remain away from campus for your safety.”
The power was restored at 7:10 p.m., normal operations are scheduled to resume on Wednesday.
This story will be updated as more information is provided about the power outage.