Ryan ChartrandA mattress caught fire in a Stenner Glen apartment Monday night, prompting 150 students to evacuate three buildings in the complex. No one was injured.
The San Luis Obispo City Fire Department responded to the call at 11 p.m. from a resident adviser and found flames in a first floor, five-bedroom suite. The fire was contained to the room and extinguished.
“I definitely want to commend the people that were on staff (at Stenner Glen). They really did a good job,” Fire Captain Jerry James said. “They helped us get right to the scene of the fire so that we could just pull up and get to work. It was nice to have that kind of cooperation.”
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, however the damages are currently estimated at approximately $10,000, according to a press release from the fire department.
Stenner Glen assistant manager Sara Esfahani said that although the complex has not had a fire in more than 10 years, the resident advisers go through an intense week of training during the summer to learn how to evacuate students in case of an emergency.
“All of the resident advisers have fire extinguishers on hand and are trained to use them,” Esfahani said. “And the first week the residents move in they have meetings with their resident advisers where they are taught how to evacuate the building.”
James said the residents were well prepared for the evacuation process but reminded students to respond to all fire alarms and, if possible, close bedroom doors before evacuating to stop avenues of fire and smoke from spreading.