Fire alarms woke residents of the Redstone Lofts this past Sunday warning of a potential fire.

 At 9:10 a.m. residents of the South Building were denied entering their rooms for up to four hours, according to residents.

The fire started in a resident’s trashbin, according to an e-mail sent from Redstone Lofts’ management to residents and parents.

“When they started letting people back into south, a girl on my floor had like half an inch of water in her room – the carpet was completely soaked,” senior Melina Chaouch said.

 The fire set off the sprinkler system which led to a significant amount of water damage before the system was able to be turned off, according to the e-mail.

Units in the South Building located around rooms 456, 356, 256 and 156 received the worst water damage, according to the Lofts management.

Twenty-eight of the 175 units in the building were affected by some level of water damage, according to the e-mail.

Redstone management could not be reached for confirmation of the residents’ complaints.

“I’d love to give a comment, but the manager told us not to talk to anyone,” a Redstone Lofts employee who refused to be named, said.

Residents of the South Building were able to wait in the common area, known as the Lantern, during this time, according to the e-mail. 

Chaouch compared the scene of students camping out in the Lantern to a refugee camp.

Other residents, like junior Sarah Mickel, took the opportunity to help her South Building friends by giving them a place to stay.

Redstone Lofts management staff, “held one on one meetings with those affected to discuss the event and to offer alternative housing at the Redstone Lofts, Redstone Apartments or the Comfort Suites located on Shelburne Road,” the e-mail stated.

“It was really unfortunate for a lot of the people living in South Building, but the Redstone Lofts management handled the situation very well,” Mickel said.  

Redstone Lofts management estimates that 14 residents will be able to return to their units by Feb. 11, and the remaining 14 residents should be able to return to their units by Feb.  21.