Campus Alert Archive
Boise State

An Evening Lab Fire at Boise State's Morrison Civil Engineering Building Forced an Evacuation and Cancelled Classes the Next Day

IDfireemergency notificationmedium confidence
Confirmed Threat

On the evening of Tuesday, February 3, 2026, around 7:30 PM MST, a fire broke out inside a lab at the H.M. Morrison Civil Engineering Building at Boise State University. The building was evacuated and Boise Fire crews quickly extinguished the blaze by 8:15 PM MST. One patient was evaluated on scene but not transported to the hospital. Boise State cancelled all classes scheduled for the building on Wednesday, February 4, 2026.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
Boise State University
Public R2 · ID
~27,000 studentsBroncoAlert
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 reconstruction199 chars
Bronco Alert: Fire reported in the Morrison Civil Engineering Building. Evacuate the building immediately. Avoid the area at Euclid Ave and University Dr. Boise Fire is responding. Updates to follow.

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

The H.M. Morrison Civil Engineering Building is at the corner of Euclid Avenue and University Drive on the BSU main campus
Boise Fire crews were on scene within minutes — typical for a city fire department serving a downtown campus
The fire originated in a lab, suggesting research-equipment ignition rather than a building-system failure
ALL CLEARSMS+40 min
Approximate reconstruction230 chars
Bronco Alert Update: The fire in the Morrison Civil Engineering Building has been fully extinguished. No injuries. The building remains closed and all classes scheduled there for Wednesday, Feb. 4 are cancelled. Updates to follow.

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

Boise State announced same-evening cancellation of next-day classes — a clarity choice that helps students avoid showing up to a closed building
The 'fully extinguished' phrasing indicates Boise Fire was confident the fire would not reignite
One patient was evaluated on scene but declined hospital transport — disclosed by BSU's emergency-management director
Context

Background

Boise State University is a public R2 research university in Boise, Idaho, with approximately 27,000 students. The H.M. Morrison Civil Engineering Building houses BSU's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. On the evening of Tuesday, February 3, 2026, around 7:30 PM MST, a fire broke out inside a lab on the corner of Euclid Avenue and University Drive on the Boise State campus. The building was evacuated, and Boise Fire crews extinguished the blaze by 8:15 PM MST. One patient was evaluated on scene by paramedics but declined transport to the hospital. Boise State cancelled all classes scheduled in the building for Wednesday, February 4, 2026, and the building remained closed pending damage assessment. The cause is under investigation. The case is significant because it documents an evening lab fire — when students working late in research spaces are often alone — and adds Idaho coverage to the archive. Boise State has a documented history of chemical incidents in engineering labs, most notably a 2017 incident when nitric acid and isopropyl alcohol mixed under a hood, sending 16 students to the hospital. The 2026 Morrison fire is among the few BSU lab incidents in recent years to result in a full building evacuation and same-day class cancellation.
Analysis

Key Findings

A fire broke out in a lab inside the H.M. Morrison Civil Engineering Building at approximately 7:30 PM MST on February 3, 2026
Boise Fire crews extinguished the fire by approximately 8:15 PM MST
One patient was evaluated on scene but not transported to the hospital
Boise State cancelled all classes scheduled in the building for Wednesday, February 4, 2026
The building remained closed pending damage assessment
The cause of the fire is under investigation
BSU has a documented history of engineering-lab chemical incidents, including a 2017 event that sent 16 students to the hospital
Outcome
Boise Fire crews extinguished the fire by approximately 8:15 PM MST after Boise State evacuated the building. One patient was evaluated on scene but not transported to the hospital. Classes scheduled for the Morrison Civil Engineering Building on Wednesday, February 4, 2026 were cancelled, and the building remained closed pending damage assessment. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    Fire fully extinguished at Boise State engineering building, officials say - KIVI-TV
    kivitv.com
  2. News
    Fire extinguished inside Boise State's civil engineering building - KTVB
    ktvb.com
  3. News
    Fire extinguished at Boise State Civil Engineering Building - Idaho News 6
    idahonews.com
  4. Official
    Natural Gas Leaks and Pipeline Breaks - Boise State Emergency Management
    boisestate.edu
  5. News
    16 students go to hospital after small chemical explosion at BSU - Idaho News 6
    idahonews.com
Tags
firelab-fireidahoboise-statemorrison-civil-engineering-buildingengineering-labevacuationclass-cancellationpublic-r2
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion