The entire C-Wing of the Neckers Building remains closed after a fire started in one of the labs last Wednesday. Damages are estimated to be more than $1 million and repairs are expected to last several months.
Rod Sievers, university spokesman for SIUC, said the estimates for damages are at least $500,000 to $600,000 in room 102 — the laboratory where the fire started — as well as $500,000 to $600,000 for equipment. He said insurance will cover most of the cost, but some of the equipment was not insured because of its age.
Crews will not be able to begin moving debris until next week because the university’s insurance company needs to examine the damage, Sievers said. He said someone would be coming in this week to take air samples in the C-Wing, as the smells of smoke and chemicals remain strong.
“We want to make sure the area is alright for human accessibility, if you will,” Sievers said. “I would imagine the major part of the clean up will begin next week, and we’ll probably have a better timeline of when everything can be completed then.”
He said the first steps of the clean up involve the removal of asbestos around the pipes and in the ceiling. Sievers said a third-party might have to come in for the clean up because of the ‘specialty’ of the incident.
Despite the expected months of clean up, Sievers said he does not believe it would seriously affect faculty or students over the summer.
“I think some people are out of their places, but its summer school and that gives plenty of room to move things around,” he said. “I think the general consensus is that we expect to have everything operational again by the time fall comes around.”
The fire likely started when the cleaning chemical a student used was ignited by an unknown heat source, Sievers said. He said the investigation is ongoing, but was unsure if the cause would ever be discovered.
The student was unharmed by the fire, but was examined by the medical staff on scene after saying he inhaled some chemicals. He was released shortly afterwards, Sievers said. The student will not be held responsible for the fire, Sievers said.
“It’s obvious it was an accident; we understand that,” he said.