By james art On Friday morning, the Hanover Fire Department responded to a fire on the eighth floor of the Remsen Medical Sciences Building, according to Hanover Fire Chief Michael Gilbert.
The floor of the Geisel School of Medicine building — a mechanical and maintenance floor with no classrooms or offices — sustained “minor” smoke and fire damage and water damage between the third and eighth floors, Gilbert said. No one was injured, Geisel Dean Duane Compton added in a community statement posted on Geisel’s website.
“The reason [the fire] it was not more significant because of the early detection of the fire system,” Gilbert said.
According to Gilbert, a sprinkler head contained the fire to “one room” until authorities could arrive. After finding the smoke and fire, the Hanover Fire Department called the Lebanon and Hartford Fire Departments for assistance, Gilbert said. Firefighters connected a hose to the building’s piping system to extinguish the flames, he explained.
The Lyme Fire Department was also dispatched to “cover” the Hanover station while its firefighters responded in Remsen, he added. A total of about 20 firefighters were dispatched.
All safety systems have now been restored in the building, while the air handling system is helping to clear residual smoke, Compton wrote.
That’s it second fire reported in Remsen in the last two years. In February 2023, a fire in an occupied laboratory caused “significant” smoke and water damage. Compton wrote that the “total damage” from today’s fire was “far less” than the previous fire.
While the cause of the fire is under investigation, Gilbert said it does not appear to be “suspicious in nature.”
The building is closed to all staff until 8 a.m. Monday, according to Compton. However, Safety and Security staff are on hand to help people collect their belongings before Monday.