There’s nothing quite like the 3 a.m. fright of blaring sound and bright, flashing lights. You roll out of your slumber and grab whatever jacket is closest to you before joining the stream of zombie-like students filing down the stairs. The sirens can be heard in the distance within minutes; you look around and recognize familiar faces in all states of slumber.
False fire alarms are a classic Bates College experience. Maybe it’s an elaborate community building exercise or maybe someone is sneaking around and blowing out a match right under all the smoke detectors to sabotage us. Regardless, the issue is widespread. Across the entire Bates College campus there have been 105 fire alarms set off so far in 2025. And, after I experienced my first two fire alarms in the same week, I began to wonder… is there a way to decrease the amount of false alarms?
Built in 2016, Kalperis is one of the newest residence halls on campus. This semester it has also become a frequent destination for the Lewiston Fire Department.The fire alarms get swapped every 7 years according to Tim Pratt, director of facilities and operations.
Pratt explained that over the summer, “We typically meet with their Inspection Division to do some building walk-throughs and checks of safety systems, fire protection systems and those sorts of things,” making sure every building on campus is in compliance with safety protocols.
Alden Zhang ‘26, a community advisor for Kalperis and Chu, explained that the alarms “seem to be going off for a variety of reasons.” Zhang shared that cooking, smoking, hair dryers, and even hot showers can trigger alarms.
“There was a fire alarm yesterday in Chu. I was mid-taking a shower,” shared Patrick Berbon ‘26.
Daniel Breton ‘29, resident of Kalperis Hall, explained that he actually found a root to one of the fire alarms this semester: “One time, an alarm was set off because of some girl’s curling iron, another time was because of someone’s candle.” (As a reminder, candles are not permitted in dorms on campus). He believes false alarms are more often caused by everyday living, not only smoking—the unspoken behavior everyone thinks is responsible for the false alarms.
This raises the question: How can false alarms be reduced when simple daily routines can set them off?
Zhang thinks that students, campus safety and facility services need to work together. “I think Bates can maintain and test equipment regularly, and students can be reminded about behaviors that cause false triggers,” Zhang said.
She suggested clearer signage and increased awareness about alarm sensitivity to help students avoid accidental triggers. Breton also believes that when thinking about reducing these fire alarms “the school could definitely improve the fire alarm system’s sensitivity as well as reiterate the dorm safety policies and precaution.”
In that case, should junior advisors, community advisors, and team leaders take a larger role in educating hall mates, or should Bates address the issue through Campus Safety and Facility Services? Who is really responsible for keeping students aware of safe practices in dorms in regards to fire alarms?
Zhang shared something many students may not know: Bates is fined each time an alarm is triggered. Each student gets fined and the more it happens, the more expensive it gets. The first fire alarm $55, second $90, third $115, fourth $145, with the fifth and subsequent alarms costing $380.
Knowing that false alarms carry these kinds of financial consequences, students, including myself and my flat iron, may think twice before cooking popcorn or styling their hair near a detector.
