Uncategorized

Park Ave. Fire Update

An unfortunate and terrible act has happened to some of our students. On November 1, 2005, one of the homes, located on the Corner of Austin St. and Park Ave., in which 11 international UB students lived, went up in flames. At this point, it is unclear as to what exactly occurred to exacerbate a fire in the house, but according to the Fire Marshall, the case is “suspicious.” Though some of the students had injuries incurred from jumping from the second floor, no one was seriously hurt. In response to this incident, UB arranged two meetings to address the importance of Safety for international students. These meetings, conducted by members of Residential Life, the International College, the Bridgeport Police, Health and Counseling, and Campus Security, were held on November 2nd, and 10th. Representatives from each department took turns expressing their concerns about student safety. David Oestreicher of Residential Life talked about the advantages of living on campus in terms of security. He stated, “even though you are paying more, you will still have a safe and secure environment.” As a safety precaution, everyone living off campus, not just the international students, should remember that UB campus security cannot respond to an incident off-campus because it is not within their jurisdiction. At this point, students would need to rely on the Bridgeport Police Department for help. According to a member of the Bridgeport Police Department, “if you do live off-campus, you should walk in pairs because if you don’t you are setting yourself to be robbed or even hurt.