Campus Alert Archive
Mount Holyoke

Smoke Over Prospect Hall: Mount Holyoke Evacuates Two Buildings as Wildfire Conditions Reach the Pioneer Valley

MAfireemergency notificationmedium confidence

On or around November 4, 2024, a brush fire in the woods behind Prospect Hall prompted Mount Holyoke College Public Safety to evacuate Prospect Hall and the neighboring Fimbel Maker and Innovation Lab. Large smoke plumes were visible above the trees. South Hadley Fire Department crews responded amid an unusually dry fall that had produced multiple brush fires across the Pioneer Valley. No injuries were reported.

Alerts
3
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
Mount Holyoke College
Private Liberal Arts · MA
~2,200 studentsMHC Alert
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

3 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 reconstruction186 chars
MHC Alert: Brush fire reported in woods behind Prospect Hall. Prospect Hall and Fimbel Lab are being evacuated. Avoid the area. Follow instructions from Public Safety. Updates to follow.

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

Reconstructed; Mount Holyoke News reported the evacuation occurred but did not quote the alert verbatim
Prospect Hall is a residence hall on the outskirts of campus near wooded acreage that adjoins Skinner State Park
Fimbel Maker and Innovation Lab is the makerspace building immediately adjacent to Prospect
UPDATESMS
Approximate reconstruction241 chars
MHC Alert: South Hadley Fire Department is on scene at the brush fire behind Prospect Hall. Residents of Prospect should gather at the designated assembly point. Smoke may be visible in the area but no structures are threatened at this time.

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

Reconstructed; Mount Holyoke News reported 'a large plume of smoke could be seen emerging from above the trees' but no flames were visible at the time of reporting
South Hadley Fire Department handles MHC's primary structural fire response
The fire occurred during a period of severe drought across western Massachusetts that produced multiple Pioneer Valley brush fires that week
ALL CLEARSMS
Approximate reconstruction214 chars
MHC Alert: All clear. The brush fire has been contained. Prospect Hall and Fimbel Lab are reopened and residents may return. There are no injuries and no campus structures were damaged. Thank you for your patience.

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

Reconstructed; Mount Holyoke News confirmed 'no injuries have been reported' and that the buildings reopened
Mount Holyoke's history of fires informed the rapid evacuation: the Seminary Building fire of 1896 destroyed the college's original structure
MHC Alert is delivered via SMS, email, and digital signage as a unified channel mix
Context

Background

On or around November 4, 2024 (the Mount Holyoke News article was published November 5), a brush fire ignited in the wooded area behind Prospect Hall on Mount Holyoke College's campus. Public Safety evacuated Prospect Hall and the adjacent Fimbel Maker and Innovation Lab as a large plume of smoke became visible above the trees. The incident occurred during an unusually dry fall that produced multiple brush fires across the Pioneer Valley, including a multi-day brush fire on Mount Tom in nearby Holyoke. The South Hadley Fire Department contained the fire, and no injuries or structural damage to college buildings were reported. The case is notable in the Clery context for documenting a small, well-handled fire-evacuation alert at a women's liberal arts college — an alert category often under-represented in the archive relative to violent-threat alerts. Mount Holyoke's campus emergency procedures include the MHC Alert mass-notification system, which is tested twice yearly and is the primary channel for incidents like this one. Mount Holyoke's historical fire vulnerability — including the 1896 Seminary Building fire that destroyed the college's original structure — shapes the institution's conservative posture toward fire-adjacent risk.
Analysis

Key Findings

Demonstrates a textbook 'minor brush fire' evacuation: initial alert, update with assembly-point guidance, all-clear within hours, no injuries
Part of a regional wildfire-conditions episode in fall 2024 that affected multiple western Massachusetts institutions
Mount Holyoke's two-building evacuation reflects an appropriately conservative posture given the college's 1896 Seminary Building fire history
Outcome
The brush fire was contained by South Hadley Fire Department personnel. No injuries to students, staff, or first responders. Prospect Hall and the Fimbel Maker and Innovation Lab were both temporarily evacuated and later reopened the same day after fire crews determined the fire posed no further threat to campus structures.
Provenance

Sources

  1. Student Paper
    Small brushfire in woods results in Prospect Hall evacuation (Mount Holyoke News)
    mountholyokenews.com
  2. News
    Crews battle Holyoke brush fire (Western Mass News)
    westernmassnews.com
  3. Official
    Campus Emergencies (Mount Holyoke College Public Safety)
    mtholyoke.edu
  4. Official
    Fimbel Lab (Mount Holyoke College)
    sites.google.com
  5. Official
    The History of Fire & Fire Safety at MHC (Mount Holyoke Alumnae Association)
    alumnae.mtholyoke.edu
Tags
firebrush-fireevacuationwomens-collegeprivate-liberal-artsmassachusettsdrought-conditionspioneer-valleyminor-incident
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion