Multiple fires were set across St. Kate’s St. Paul campus Wednesday in an apparent case of arson, according to emergency alerts sent to students.
According to tweets from the university, fires were “found and contained” in at least seven buildings, including the chapel and Coeur de Catherine, which houses the dining hall, library and student center. No injuries have been reported.
Fires have been found and contained in Coeur de Catherine, Derham Hall, the Chapel, Fontbonne, Mendall Hall, the Butler Center, and St. Mary’s.
If you see something or have information about the fires, please contact Public Safety immediately at 651.690.8888. (2/2)
— St. Kate’s (@StKate) January 17, 2018
LeAnn Suchy, the school’s educational technology librarian, said on Twitter that two fires in the library bathrooms had been extinguished.
“So crazy. Everyone’s fine, they were small, in bathroom stalls, but still so weird,” Suchy tweeted.
The university said it was still working to identify the fires’ cause. An email to students from Public Safety had the subject line “Arson on campus.”
“If a fire alarm goes off [in] your building, immediately move to safety. There are no fire drills today,” the email read.
The school sent out another message at 1:42 p.m. reporting that the “investigation is ongoing” and police had arrived on campus.
Investigation is ongoing. Police department is now on campus. Text message alerts from Public Safety available via the LiveSafe app, which you can download for iPhone: https://t.co/UhD71RprNQ or Android: https://t.co/IhTpQTHshR
— St. Kate’s (@StKate) January 17, 2018
In the same tweet, the university reminded students that emergency alerts would continue to come through the app LiveSafe. St. Kate’s drew controversy last year when it sent alerts about an on-campus shooter through LiveSafe, an app that many students did not have at the time.
A tweet at 2:21 also called the fires arson. A chair and papers in a garbage can include the items set on fire.
Deputy Fire Chief Stacy Hohertz reported and Public Safety has confirmed, that no injuries have been reported in today’s fires on campus. The arson incidents included fires set to a chair and papers in a garbage can. Investigation is ongoing and we’ll continue to provide updates.
— St. Kate’s (@StKate) January 17, 2018
Sophie Carson can be reached at cars0017@stthomas.edu.