Students on Michigan State University’s campus may have electricity back, but their showers are still cold. Some students, including freshman Jenna Frye, have been putting off showers altogether.
“I actually put off taking a shower until today because I wanted the hot water to come back on,” Frye said.
Frye was in her dorm room when the power went out Saturday afternoon.
“At first everything flickered, and I was like, ‘Oh, that's not a good sign,’” Frye said.
Then she heard her air purifier shut off and watched as everything in her dorm room lost power.
A widespread power outage hit MSU’s East Lansing campus around 4:15 p.m. Saturday, disrupting dining halls, building access and other campus services. MSU said the outage was tied to a failed connection point at the T.B. Simon Power Plant.
Due to the outage, MSU transitioned to online classes Monday, Sept. 21.
MSU will hold a news conference at 4 p.m. Monday to discuss Saturday’s widespread outage and what the university called its “cascading impacts” on campus. President Kevin Guskiewicz and university officials overseeing facilities and residential services are expected to answer questions.
Earlier Saturday, Frye finished her math homework, but her friend was not as fortunate.
“Our math homework is on WeBWorK, and the website was down the entire time because of the power being out. Because it's like a university website,” Frye said.
The deadline for the homework was extended because of the outage.
Frye’s roommate, Rory Shingleton, was less concerned about the situation.
“I wasn't really worried about it. It really wasn't that bad,” Shingleton said. “There were a lot of people in the hallway that were freaking out.”
Frye and Shingleton had to wash their hands in ice-cold water. While they avoided taking showers, sophomore Nevaeh Parker did not.
“I absolutely did take a cold shower,” Parker said.
Parker was riding her bike when the outage occurred. She returned to her dorm to find the power off and only the main entrances accessible. She needed to take a shower, so she endured the cold.
“I turned it on the lowest setting possible because I didn't want the cold water splashing on me,” Parker said.
Parker said the outage also made her realize how many campus amenities depend on electricity.
“The water fountains,” Parker said. “I was going to get my water. I could not get my water. It was crazy.”
Parker said she had not stocked up on drinking water beforehand. One of the first things she did when electricity was restored was fill her water bottle at a drinking fountain.
“I mean, it's only the third week, and the power went out,” Parker said.
MSU crews continue working to restore hot water and full services to affected campus buildings.