No Injuries Reported after Small Fire in Marks Hall

Marks Hall.

A small fire broke out in Claremont McKenna’s Marks Hall just before 8 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 2, damaging five rooms and triggering a response by the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Smoke alarms went off and a resident assistant pulled the fire alarm, according to an email from Sharon Basso, CMC’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. Sprinklers were activated in the rooms surrounding the blaze, and the Los Angeles Fire Department promptly arrived to the scene.

Basso noted the damage to the rooms stemmed primarily from water and smoke, not the fire itself. She added the college would assist displaced residents with relocation, recovery of belongings, and emotional support. The email concluded by asking faculty to be flexible for students who might miss or arrive late to class.

Later in the day, a second, more detailed email provided students with fire safety guidelines, particularly concerning the use of lithium-ion batteries. “While the cause of the fire is still under review, it is possible that a contributing factor may have been a portable power bank containing a lithium-ion battery which was being charged through a power strip,” Basso wrote.