Fire contained at CMSV’s Founders Hall

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The sound of sirens pervaded the area surrounding the College of Mount Saint Vincent (CMSV) on Saturday at 9 a.m. as firefighters and college security staff responded to a fire on the third floor of the Founders Hall building. 

Fire officials traced the fire — which was contained to an unoccupied office and hallway and did not result in injuries — to a malfunctioning laptop computer in the human resources office. 

CMSV security officers contacted FDNY after observing smoke billowing from under the locked door of the human resources office. Once they gained access to the area, officers determined the fire could not be doused by portable fire extinguishers. FDNY arrived to put out the blaze before it spread throughout the building. 

“We are very grateful that the FDNY and college security staff responded to the alarm and handled the fire so quickly,” Kevin DeGroat, vice president of operations at CMSV, said in a statement. 

He added that work to restore the fire-damaged spaces began immediately after the incident on Saturday. Operations on floors below the third floor were expected resume by the end of this week.

The third floor, meanwhile, will require more extensive renovations. 

Employees who work on the third floor of Founders Hall will be relocated until the clean up is complete, Mr. DeGroat said.

College of Mount Saint Vincent, Fire, FDNY, Founders Hall, Kevin DeGroat, Maya Rajamani

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