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Campus goes dark, power outage halts classes

The main campus lost power around 6 p.m. Sunday.
The main campus lost power around 6 p.m. Sunday.
Photo by Andreas Pelekis for The Lafayette
The outage is believed to be the result of storm damage to the crossbars of an electrical pole near the Leopard Parking Deck. Another pole will need to be replaced entirely. (Photo by Austin Carey)

Most of the Lafayette College campus went dark Sunday evening after a power outage. As of Monday afternoon, most academic buildings appeared fully powered, though a campus-wide email late Sunday night stated that main-campus classes were to be canceled or held online, and non-essential staff were to stay home.

Another campus-wide email sent Monday night said the outage was caused by tree damage to two electrical poles near the Leopard Parking Deck and the Bushkill Creek, with estimates that power would be restored late Monday night. At the site of one damaged pole, an IB Abel lineman working on repairs said he was not sure exactly when power would be restored, but that it was “gonna be late.”

Bailey Health Center and two dining locations — Marquis Dining Hall and Cinco — are open and fully functional. Skillman Library and the Kirby Sports Center gym are closed. Markle Hall is open with power, though Monday’s admission tours were canceled. Many academic buildings appear to have full power, and several professors convened their classes in person despite the email.

Due to the outage, the deadline for fall semester course withdrawal was extended to Tuesday at 5 p.m., according to an email from the provost’s office.

The outage comes nine days after the last, when most of campus lost power Halloween evening and stayed dark for more than a day.

About the Contributors
Elisabeth Seidel
Elisabeth Seidel, Editor-in-Chief
Elisabeth is an anthropology major who’s passionate about preserving information and seeing interesting stories told. When not in the newsroom (which doesn’t happen often), she can be found copy-editing an obscure Wikipedia page or nearing the bottom of a rabbit hole. She’s always glad to talk about the paper, even if you didn’t ask.
Andreas Pelekis
Andreas Pelekis, News Editor
Andreas is a senior double majoring in Film & Media Studies and English, passionate about multimedia, sports and everything in-between. He’ll also love to talk about any tennis player ever, and the future of media.    
Austin Carey, Photo Editor