Bag of potato chips in oven started fire in Cowlings and Ilium, USC says

The fire erupted on the building’s fifth floor Tuesday night.

By HENRY KOFMAN & JENNIFER NEHRER
A fire truck
The Los Angeles Fire Department used a crane to access the dorm after two fire extinguishers failed to put out the blaze. (Henry Kofman / Daily Trojan)

UPDATE: A bag of potato chips left in an oven caused Tuesday night’s fire in Cowlings and Ilium Residential College, USC Fire Safety & Emergency Planning wrote in a statement to the Daily Trojan. The fire was contained to the oven and extinguished by Department of Public Safety officers.

Residents of Cowlings and Ilium received an email Thursday reminding them to not store items in the oven broiler bottom compartment, which is noted on magnets placed on the compartment in the dorms.

Previous reporting continues below:

A small fire prompted the evacuation of Cowlings and Ilium Residential College on Tuesday night. The fire erupted on the building’s fifth floor. Elija Barnes, a sophomore majoring in mechanical engineering, said residents used two fire extinguishers but could not contain the fire.

The Los Angeles Fire Department used a crane to access the dorm. Officials have since allowed students to reenter the building, though they initially delayed reentry to fifth floor residents because of a strong odor that the fire caused.


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