University at Buffalo Police continue to investigation an odor in the Red Jacket Residence Hall on the North Campus that forced an evacuation Thursday night.
UB officials say "sophisticated detection equipment" was used to search Building Two of the Red Jacket Complex after nearly 500 people were forced to leave the building.
“Firefighters went through numerous times with sophisticated detection equipment and didn’t pick anything up,” explained Joseph Brennan, associate vice president for university communications.
A UB Alert text message was dispatched to the campus community at 10:30 p.m., advising people about the evacuation. A follow-up UB Alert at about 1 a.m. Friday stated that it was safe for students to return to Red Jacket.
No chemical traces were found and all were allowed to return. Six people were treated after reporting a burning sensation in their eyes. One student with a history of asthma was taken to the hospital for further examination.
The odor is not construction related.
“We ruled out natural gas, we ruled out chemicals. Nobody was seriously harmed. We apologize for the disruption that it caused, but it’s better to be safe than to be sorry,” Brennan said.
