Campus Alert Archive
SUNY Potsdam

Saturday Night Dorm Arson Displaces 62 Students from Van Housen Hall

NYfireemergency notificationhigh confidence
Confirmed Threat

Just after 6:18 PM EST on February 10, 2024, smoke detectors went off in Van Housen Hall, a residence hall at SUNY Potsdam, and crews arrived within three to four minutes to a third-floor fire later determined to have been intentionally set in Room 304 with lit matches. All 62 residents evacuated to the Fireside Lounge in the Barrington Student Union; no injuries were reported.

Alerts
3
Response
7 min
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
State University of New York at Potsdam
Public Bachelors · NY
~2,700 studentsRavePotsdam Alert
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

3 messages in sequence · 3 verified verbatim

INITIAL ALERTSMS
Verified verbatimSUNY Potsdam official 'Van Housen Hall Fire Updates' alert archive page132 chars
There has been a report of a fire on campus at Van Housen Hall. Emergency personnel have been notified and are responding to campus.
Verbatim text of the first Potsdam Alert push, archived by SUNY Potsdam on the official alert-updates page
Pushed within minutes of the 6:18 PM EST smoke-detector activation; the Potsdam Fire Department arrived on scene within 3-4 minutes
The terse first-alert format ('There has been a report of a fire...') is standard Rave-platform Potsdam Alert phrasing for initial pushes — names the building and confirms response, but withholds operational instructions until a follow-up
UPDATESMS
Verified verbatimSUNY Potsdam official 'Van Housen Hall Fire Updates' alert archive page224 chars
The fire reported in Van Housen Hall earlier this evening has now been extinguished. No injuries have been reported. All Van Housen residents should report to the Fireside Lounge in the Barrington Student Union at this time.
Verbatim text of the second Potsdam Alert push, archived by SUNY Potsdam on the official alert-updates page
Sent after the fire was reported out around 8:00 PM EST — this is the message that delivered the operational routing to the named Fireside Lounge muster point
By this point Residence Life was actively coordinating overnight accommodations for all 62 displaced residents — including pets, which were also evacuated safely
FOLLOW-UPEmail
Verified verbatimSUNY Potsdam official 'Van Housen Hall Fire Updates' alert archive page396 chars
Potsdam Alert: All 62 Van Housen Hall residents have been safely accounted for and are being provided accommodations on campus for the night, if needed. Counseling Center staff will be available in the Fireside Lounge tomorrow from 1 to 4 p.m. for any student who would like to speak with a counselor. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the NYS Office of Fire Prevention and Control.
Verbatim text of the third Potsdam Alert message, archived on the official SUNY Potsdam Van Housen Hall Fire Updates page — confirmed by multiple search results reproducing the '62 residents,' 'Counseling Center,' 'Fireside Lounge,' and 'NYS Office of Fire Prevention and Control' language verbatim
Sent the evening of February 10, 2024 as the final messaging in the immediate-response phase
Arson charges against the 24-year-old Room 304 resident were filed three days later on February 13, 2024 — not immediately disclosed in the initial alert sequence
Context

Background

At 6:18 PM EST on Saturday, February 10, 2024, smoke detectors activated in Van Housen Hall, a residence hall on the SUNY Potsdam campus in St. Lawrence County. Crews from the Potsdam Fire Department arrived within three to four minutes, and the fire — originating in Room 304 on the third floor — was reported out by approximately 8:00 PM EST. Pushed initially by Potsdam Alert SMS and then by email follow-up, the messaging directed all Van Housen residents to the Fireside Lounge in the Barrington Student Union, where Residence Life arranged overnight accommodations and the Counseling Center opened the following afternoon. All 62 residents — and their pets — were safely accounted for; no injuries were reported. Investigation by the New York State Office of Fire Prevention and Control and University Police, working with state and federal partners, led within days to arson charges against the 24-year-old Room 304 resident, accused of intentionally lighting matches and throwing them toward a cup, igniting items under his bed. Ten of the 62 displaced residents were ultimately unable to return for the rest of the spring 2024 semester due to fire and water damage to their rooms.
Analysis

Key Findings

All 62 residents and pets safely evacuated within 7 minutes of smoke-detector activation — a textbook outcome attributable to detector-based pre-alert and rapid PFD response (3-4 minutes)
The alert sequence used a specific, named indoor shelter (Fireside Lounge, Barrington Student Union) — a best practice in a 14-degree February evening at a North Country SUNY campus
Cause was later determined to be arson by a resident — the alert sequence did not preemptively label the cause, sticking to confirmed facts as they emerged
Outcome
The fire was reported out by approximately 8:00 PM EST. All 62 residents — and their pets — were safely evacuated. Initial accommodations were offered on campus; [10 students were ultimately displaced for the rest of the spring semester](https://www.wwnytv.com/2024/02/11/some-suny-potsdam-students-may-be-displaced-rest-spring-semester-following-residence-hall-fire/) due to fire and water damage. A 24-year-old resident of Room 304 was [charged days later with second- and fourth-degree arson](https://www.wwnytv.com/2024/02/13/buffalo-man-charged-suny-potsdam-dorm-fire/) after court papers alleged he intentionally lit matches and threw them toward a cup, igniting items under his bed.
Provenance

Sources

  1. Official
    SUNY Potsdam Alert: Van Housen Hall Fire Updates (SUNY Potsdam)
    potsdam.edu
  2. News
    Local Fire Departments Responding to Fire Reported at Van Housen Hall at SUNY Potsdam (North Country Now)
    northcountrynow.com
  3. News
    SUNY Potsdam residency hall damaged in fire, students displaced (WWNY-TV)
    wwnytv.com
  4. News
    UPDATE: 10 SUNY Potsdam students displaced for the rest of the spring semester following residence hall fire (WWNY-TV)
    wwnytv.com
  5. News
    Court papers: SUNY Potsdam student started dorm fire by throwing lit matches (WWNY-TV)
    wwnytv.com
  6. News
    Buffalo man charged in SUNY Potsdam dorm fire (WWNY-TV)
    wwnytv.com
  7. News
    Fire forces evacuation of SUNY Potsdam residence hall (NNY360)
    nny360.com
Tags
firearsonresidence-hallevacuationpotsdamsunynew-yorkpublic-bachelorsnorth-countrywinterpotsdam-alert
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion