Shuttering still cause for fire concern
By Diane Chiddister
Antioch College supporters still have reason to feel concerned about
the safety of the recent campus shutdown, according to a college alumnus
and fire safety expert.
“If everyone has the idea that Antioch buildings are protected
by sprinkler systems, that’s false,” said Gene Milgram of
Annapolis, Md., in an interview last week. Milgram, an alumnus who as
a student served on the college’s fire department and later worked
for eight years as an analyst for the New York State Office for Fire
Prevention and Control, contacted the News regarding recent articles
on the subject.
Of concern, according to Milgram, was last week’s News article
that stated that the college’s sprinkler systems were operational,
as reported by Antioch College Vice President Milt Thompson. While Thompson
had earlier stated that all water to shutdown buildings had been turned
off, he later found that the sprinkler systems had been left on. Consequently,
the university is in compliance with state fire codes, according to
Miami Township Fire Chief Colin Altman.
But that article implied that all buildings are protected by sprinkler
systems, which is not the case, according to Milgram. Rather, only recently-built
or remodeled buildings are sprinkler protected, and those buildings
are the Coretta Scott King Center, South Hall, Weston Hall, and the
Pennell House, according to Altman. The attic of the Main Building has
a sprinkler system, but the rest of the building does not, according
to Altman, who also said a portion of the theater building has sprinklers.
The rest of campus buildings have standpipe or alarm systems, some of
which are connected to a monitoring system and some of which are not,
according to Altman in an interview last week.
For instance, while the wooden attic of Main Building is protected by
a sprinkler, the rest of the building has an occupant standpipe system
designed to be operated by building occupants in the event of fire.
Since the building is not occupied, that system would not be operational,
and while the building has a fire alarm, the alarm is not monitored.
Consequently, a fire in Main Building will only become apparent after
it has grown large enough to be seen by those outside the building,
according to Milgram.
The library, Curl gym, and McGregor buildings also have unmonitored
alarm systems, according to Altman, who said that Birch, South, Mills
Hall and the science building have monitored systems. The majority of
the campuses’ 27 buildings have monitored systems, according to
Altman, which means the fire department would be alerted in a matter
of minutes.
These systems are all in compliance with the state fire code, which
requires that buildings meet the standards that were in place when the
building was constructed, Altman said.
But even monitored alarm systems mean that a response to a fire outbreak
would not be immediate, as it would be with a sprinkler system, according
to Milgram.
“The crucial word in firefighting is time,” he said. “Everything
is an attempt to reduce the time lag.”
In contrast, Altman said he is not concerned about the fire hazard on
campus, at least partly because several buildings, including Main Hall
and McGregor, are constructed of brick rather than wood, which slows
fires.
“I don’t have a major concern about a fire hazard there
as long as they maintain the security plan,” Altman said of the
university.
In a recent meeting of Village Council, Yellow Springs Chief of Police
John Grote stated that he had met with Thompson, who said the university
has hired a security firm for limited security, that security cameras
are being placed on campus and that maintenance employees will walk
through unused buildings regularly.
While the state fire code requires that furniture and other flammables
be removed in buildings with sprinkler systems if the sprinklers are
not turned on, that requirement does not apply to buildings that do
not have sprinkler systems, according to Altman, who said that to comply
with code in the older buildings, the university may keep furniture
inside but has to keep buildings secured through locking or through
boarding up windows, he said. Thompson stated in an earlier interview
that furniture remains in many buildings.
Thompson did not return a call seeking comment on the university’s
security plan.
Contact: dchiddister@ysnews.com