Campus Alert Archive
UNL

A Silent Leak That Sent 41 Fraternity Members to the Hospital

NEhazmatemergency notificationmedium confidence

On January 14, 2011, a carbon monoxide leak forced more than 40 members of UNL's Phi Kappa Psi fraternity to evacuate their temporary residence at the Alpha Tau Omega house at 1433 R St., after members reported headaches and at least one fainted. Lincoln Fire & Rescue identified carbon monoxide as the cause, and 41 members were transported by university bus to local hospitals for precautionary evaluation.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
—
Injured
—
Institution
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Public R1 · NE
~24,000 studentsUNL 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 reconstruction187 chars
UNL ALERT: Carbon monoxide leak reported at 1433 R St. Occupants have been evacuated to the Nebraska Union for medical evaluation. Avoid the area while Lincoln Fire & Rescue investigates.

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

Reconstructed wording: no verbatim UNL alert text was located, so this paraphrases the confirmed facts reported by the Daily Nebraskan — a CO leak at 1433 R St. and evacuation to the Nebraska Union.
Students were first triaged at the Nebraska Union across the street, where paramedics used a LifePak 15 to measure carboxyhemoglobin levels before deciding on transport.
Carbon monoxide is odorless and invisible, so the alert's value was in naming the specific address and hazard rather than describing anything observable.
UPDATESMS+1h 30m
Approximate reconstruction201 chars
UNL ALERT UPDATE: 41 individuals from the R St. residence are being transported to area hospitals as a precaution. No life-threatening injuries reported. The building remains closed pending inspection.

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

Reconstructed wording. The Daily Nebraskan reported 41 fraternity members transported by university bus to local hospitals for precautionary evaluation.
Framed as an update rather than an all-clear because the building stayed closed pending inspection.
One junior had fainted and showed serious CO-poisoning signs, receiving oxygen at the scene — the leak had been building over several days before symptoms grew severe enough to prompt a 911 call.
Context

Background

Carbon monoxide incidents are among the most insidious campus hazards because the gas is colorless and odorless, and symptoms — headaches, dizziness, fainting — are easy to dismiss. At the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity was living temporarily in the Alpha Tau Omega house at 1433 R St. when a CO leak sickened members over the course of several days in January 2011. After members complained of headaches and one fainted, Lincoln Fire & Rescue ordered an evacuation and transported 41 members by university bus to local hospitals for precautionary evaluation; none of the injuries was life-threatening. The episode prompted UNL housing to rethink CO-detection policies in fraternity and university residences. As a hazmat emergency on university-affiliated housing, it is a textbook example of a Clery emergency notification driven by an environmental hazard rather than crime or weather.
Analysis

Key Findings

A carbon monoxide leak at UNL's Phi Kappa Psi temporary residence sent 41 members to hospitals on January 14, 2011
The gas had been leaking for days, with symptoms escalating from headaches to a fainting episode before a 911 call
Students were first triaged at the Nebraska Union, where paramedics measured blood CO levels with a LifePak 15 before transport
The incident prompted UNL housing to reconsider carbon-monoxide detection policies in campus and fraternity residences
Provenance

Sources

  1. Student Paper
    UPDATE: After leak, normalcy returns for hospitalized fraternity - Daily Nebraskan
    dailynebraskan.com
  2. Student Paper
    Campus carbon monoxide leak leaves housing rethinking policies - Daily Nebraskan
    dailynebraskan.com
Tags
hazmatcarbon-monoxidenebraskafraternityevacuation2011emergency-notification
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion