Fire alarms and sprinkler systems on the Broadway campus were activated at roughly 1:40 p.m. yesterday afternoon, causing an unplanned evacuation of the school.

The sprinkler system in a Physics classroom on the second floor of the Siboni building was activated and flooded the second floor and floors below it.

Students remained outside for about 30 minutes until they were allowed to enter the other school buildings. Fire alarms in the Siboni building continued to blare for over an hour, and D Period classes were assigned to different locations on the third floor of the Flood Mansion.

“I knew something was up because you usually are fully in class when there’s a fire drill,” Kelly Rosanelli ’18, (CSH) said. “It was concerning, especially as stories started passing around of what it possibly could be. It is very much worrying when you’re outside and everyone’s saying the school’s gonna blow up.”

An unidentified, foul-smelling liquid poured out of the sprinkler system in Room 5213 of the Siboni building.

“I saw liquid fall from the ceiling, and it was smoky and black, and it smelled like gas,” Georgia Ellis ’17 said.

At an assembly this morning, CSH Head of School Rachel Simpson told students that there was not a gas leak and that it was strictly a flooding issue.

Faculty and staff recovered student belongings that were left during the evacuation effort.

“I left my stuff down there before I evacuated the building,” Ellis said. “They told us they were bringing our stuff up in trucks, which they did. My stuff was lined up in the Main Hall, and it was really easy to find.”

President Ann Marie Krejcarek wrote in an email to parents and faculty last night that “the damage will necessitate professional water mitigation with commercial restoration services.”

The Roundtable will post class relocations schedules as well as further updates as they become available on our website and on our social media accounts.