Fire leads to examination of campus laundries

A fire that broke out in a Quadrangle laundry room last week has led students and administrators to take a closer look at other problems plaguing the washing machines and dryers throughout campus. Residential Living is planning to discuss the situation with Higene Laundry Company, the company responsible for servicing all residential laundry facilities. According to Diana Koros, assistant dean in residence for Community House, last week's fire in the Magee section of the Quad started when a student put money into the dryer's coin slot and pushed the slot into the machine, causing a spark that ignited a small fire. Students put out the fire with an extinguisher, Koros said. "The Fire Department indicated that there was too much lint in the dryers," she said. Earlier this semester, burnt lint was found behind the dryer. No one came forward to report or take responsibility for the incident, Koros said. "If I had thought it was the mechanical workings, I would have closed them," she said. Higene General Manager John Christian said the fire was caused by a short in the electrical plug, noting that the University is responsible for all utilities, including electricity, water, sewer and gas. These two incidents are more serious examples of what students say is a general problem with the University's laundry facilities. Many complained that washers and dryers do not always work properly -- if at all. Wharton freshman Mike Novoseller, who lives in King's Court/English House, said he needed three washer cycles and four dryer cycles to finish two small loads of laundry. "The machines I used were defective -- and there were no signs," he said. "We should breach the contract with Higene and stop ripping off Penn students." Despite claims that Higene is at fault, Christian said students sometimes overload the washer or dryer, thereby not allowing their clothes to tumble dry properly. "If they put 25 pounds of clothes in a machine meant for 16 pounds, the clothes will not wash or dry," he said. According to Christian, Higene employees do a "visual inspection" of each machine in each laundry room every 10 days. This does not, however, include activating the machines to check for mechanical problems. Christian added that despite reports of increased complaints, Higene has not received more calls than usual recently. But Residential Living Director Gigi Simeone disagreed, saying that there have been more complaints this year than in other years. In addition, students have complained that there are not sufficient washing machines and dryers in the residences.