The University Police Detective Unit is currently investigating a number of small fires that were intentionally ignited in Hill College House Saturday night.
"There were no ignition sources in the area, so it had to be malicious mischief," said Gene Janda, a safety specialist with University Fire and Emergency Services.
Janda was certain the fires were intentionally set.
"They think it's a prank, they think it's fun to do that, but they don't understand the jeopardy they placed" Hill residents in, he said.
The Division of Public Safety learned about the arson around 11:45 p.m. on Saturday, after the fires had already burned out. Damage was minimal, according to Janda, limited to scorched doors and singed walls.
"I'm not necessarily saying there was going to be any major fire," Janda said, noting that nevertheless, even small fires often burn out of control.
Interestingly, the building's fire alarm went off three times between approximately 4:30 a.m. Sunday morning and 10:30 a.m. Monday, triggered by smoke from Hill's dining hall, a power surge and a prank.
None of the false alarms were sparked by the fires.
"I guess it was just coincidental that they all happened," Engineering freshman Emily Hilton said.
Hill residents were apparently unaware that small portions of their building were on fire.
"We were sort of unaware as to why there were fire drills," a resident of Hill's fifth floor said, when asked about the small fires set on his floor.
Many felt that University students were unlikely to notice anything on Saturday night, small fires or otherwise.
A Hill resident and a member of the house staff, Hilton was away for the weekend. She returned in time to troop into the snow on Monday morning with her housemates, however, as the power surge set off the alarm.
"It was snowing outside, it was cold, people were sleepy," she said. "It wasn't a good time."
Hill College House Dean Amy Pollock said that she and her staffers are "doing everything we can to reduce the number of false alarms."
The student who set off the alarm early Sunday morning is still being sought.
"A student definitely put people's lives in danger," Pollock said. "We are currently investigating the situation."
"It was definitely a malicious act," she added.
Some worry that the false alarms may lead house residents to ignore the alarm during an actual fire.
"It's very frustrating -- I live here too," Pollock said. "But I definitely want to encourage people to continue to go out when the fire alarm sounds."
