Campus Alert Archive
MSU

A Gas Leak by the Drill Field Emptied Middleton Hall and Roberts Building, and Maroon Alert Ran the Whole Thing in 77 Minutes

MSgas leakemergency notificationmedium confidence
Confirmed Threat

On Tuesday, February 13, 2024, a reported gas leak near Mississippi State University's Middleton Hall prompted the university to send a campus-wide Maroon Alert and evacuate Middleton Hall and the adjacent Roberts Building. MSU Police secured the area while Atmos Energy and university crews responded; the leak was stopped and the university announced normal operations were resuming, with the Central Plant temporarily closed and heating and cooling affected in some buildings.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
Mississippi State University
Public R1 · MS
~23,000 studentsMaroon Alert
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTSMS
Approximate reconstruction168 chars
Maroon Alert: Gas leak reported near Middleton Hall. Evacuate Middleton Hall and the Roberts Building now and avoid the area. Crews are responding. More info to follow.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

The 3:39 p.m. CST first-alert time comes from reporting on MSU's response; the verbatim Maroon Alert wording was not recoverable, so the text is reconstructed.
Middleton Hall houses Army and Air Force ROTC and sits next to the Drill Field; the Roberts Building houses parking and transit, the post office, and a Steak 'n Shake, which is why both were cleared.
ALL CLEARSMS+1h 17m
Approximate reconstruction220 chars
Maroon Alert: The gas leak near Middleton Hall has been stopped. Buildings are reopening and normal operations are resuming. The Central Plant is temporarily closed; heating and cooling may be affected in some buildings.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

The 4:56 p.m. CST all-clear time is drawn from MSU reporting that the leak was stopped, placing the full incident at about 77 minutes from first alert.
This is a genuine all-clear: it reopens the buildings while honestly flagging the lingering Central Plant closure and HVAC effects.
Context

Background

Mississippi State's Maroon Alert system is the university's official emergency-notification channel in Starkville. In this incident, the gas leak near Middleton Hall drew an Atmos Energy response and an MSU Police perimeter; the university's own newsroom confirmed the leak was stopped and operations resumed while noting the Central Plant remained closed for several hours. Middleton Hall's role as the home of campus ROTC programs and its position beside the Drill Field made the rapid evacuation notable. The episode is a clean example of a fast utility-hazard Clery emergency notification with a real all-clear.
Analysis

Key Findings

A gas leak near Middleton Hall on February 13, 2024 triggered a Maroon Alert and evacuation of Middleton Hall and the Roberts Building
Reporting places the first alert at 3:39 p.m. CST and the all-clear at 4:56 p.m. CST, about a 77-minute window
Crews stopped the leak with no injuries; the Central Plant closure disrupted HVAC in some buildings for several hours
Exact Maroon Alert wording was not recoverable from an official archive, so the alert text is honestly marked reconstructed while the timestamps are sourced
Outcome
Crews stopped the gas leak and reopened the affected buildings. MSU temporarily closed the Central Plant for several hours, which disrupted heating and cooling in some buildings. No injuries were reported.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    Gas leak stopped on MSU campus - WTVA
    wtva.com
  2. Official
    Campus returns to normal operations, some service disruptions continue - Mississippi State University
    msstate.edu
  3. Official
    The Maroon Alert System - Mississippi State University Emergency Information
    emergency.msstate.edu
Tags
gas-leakmississippistarkvilleevacuationmaroon-alertatmos-energyemergency-notification
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion