Mac and cheese evacuation

At around 7 p.m. on Oct. 9, UW-Eau Claire police officers responded to a fire alarm in Towers Hall North. Hall Director Grace Becker told officers the alarm was likely caused by burned food in the 6th-floor lounge microwave.

Firefighters arrived on the scene and confirmed the alarm had originated in room 690. They found light smoke in the air and the smell of burnt food.

Fire personnel found a container of burnt mac and cheese in the microwave.

The fire alarm was reset and residents were able to return to the building.

A “strange encounter” in Davies

At around 10:48 a.m. on Sept. 30, officers responded to a call that a Sodexo employee had heard what she thought was a raccoon or cat on the fourth floor of the Davies Student Center.

When officers arrived, the Sodexo employee said she had been on the fourth floor and heard scratching and hissing noises. The employee said she heard the sound of claws scratching against wood. She described the sound as “god awful.”

Officers searched the entire fourth floor, but did not locate any “feral or wild animals.” They did notice a water pressure regulator that was making a hissing noise.

Later, at around 3:15 p.m. officers were called back to the Davies regarding additional “animal noises.”

The caller had been hearing squeaking noises in the area of the same condensate valve that had been investigated earlier in the day. The officer told the caller the noise was mechanical in nature. The caller had not seen any animals on the fourth floor.

Officers checked the fourth floor again but did not locate anything of interest.

Out of order

At around 3:41 p.m. on Oct. 8, officers received a call that one of the elevator cars in Towers Hall North was stuck on the lower level.

A resident assistant at Towers North reported elevator car no. 4 was stuck with both doors open. Nobody was inside the elevator.

When officers arrived they noticed the elevator’s panel was flashing “SA.” They went to the control room on the 12th floor and turned off the power for the stuck car.

Officers reported the incident to Becker. Becker said after-hours service was not available at the time.

The elevator was documented as a facility-related issue.

Mystery smell

At around 10:15 p.m. on Oct. 4, officers received a call from a hall director reporting the smell of marijuana near a dorm room.

Officers arrived at the residence hall and said they could smell food, but not marijuana. They smelled around the doors in the area but did not notice the smell of marijuana.

The officers talked with the hall director who said she wasn’t sure where the smell had been coming from.

Officers searched the area again but still did not smell any marijuana, and left the scene without making contact with any residents.

Each of these cases was recorded using UW-Eau Claire Police Department-issued body cameras.

Mohr can be reached at [email protected].