This story is developing and will be updated.
Power restored to Quad; 1920 Commons to close in afternoon
Feb. 5 at 10:24 a.m.:
Power was restored in the Quad and 1920s Commons overnight after facing over nine hours of no electricity, according to emails sent to residents and community members.
Penn Dining wrote in an email to the University community that 1920s Commons will be closed from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. as a result of the power outage. The email corrected an earlier Penn Dining email that said 1920s Commons would be open during regular business hours today with menu changes due to the power outage.
The initial email also said that Gourmet Grocer will open at 11 a.m. and Starbucks on the ground floor would be open with "limited menu options."
Quad remains without power over seven hours into blackout
Feb. 5 at 1:34 a.m.:
As of 1:34 a.m. — over seven hours into a partial campus blackout — the Quad remained without power, according to residents, who also reported cold water temperatures. Power was restored to Harnwell around midnight, where trucks from the electrical contractor Hatzel & Buehler, Inc. were parked in an adjacent parking lot.
Power returned to Harnwell College House, University says
Feb. 4 at 11:52 p.m.:
Power was returned to Harnwell at 11:50 p.m., according to multiple residents. An email from Penn Residential Services to Harnwell residents said that power was restored at 12:02 a.m.
Power to be returned to dorms later tonight, according to email to residents
Feb. 4 at 11:38 p.m.:
Penn Residential Services wrote in an email to Harnwell residents that they anticipate power being restored within the next two hours, and to Quad residents that they anticipate power being returned within the next four hours.
The email suggested that University Life would notify undergraduate school advising offices of the power outage, and "students should reach out to their school advisors if they have academic concerns."
The email also stated that FRES has staff and contractors actively working on repairs at the time of sending.
Penn has no estimate for restoration of power, according to email to Harnwell and Quad residents
Feb. 4 at 9:55 p.m.:
Penn Residential Services has no estimate for when the power to affected buildings will be restored, according to an email sent to Harnwell and Quad residents at 9:45 p.m.
The email said that residents are able to stay overnight in the "common areas" of several college houses, including the rooftop lounges in Harrison and Rodin, the Hill Atrium, and the living rooms in Gutmann and Lauder.
"Allied guards will patrol the common areas throughout the College Houses," the email said.
The email also asked residents to close their windows in order to "help retain heat." Temperatures are forecast to reach a low of 30 degrees Fahrenheit in Philadelphia tonight.
Penn has not alerted PECO about ongoing power outage affecting campus, spokesperson says
Feb. 4 at 8:39 p.m.:
Penn's main energy provider told The Daily Pennsylvanian that they have not received reports from the University about an ongoing power outage — despite Penn telling affected students that they were investigating it along with PECO.
The power outage struck a section of campus on Sunday at approximately 6:16 p.m., affecting locations including Harnwell College House, the entirety of the Quad, and 1920 Commons. A spokesperson for PECO — the energy company that services the University — told the DP that PECO currently has no teams on campus. They added that PECO found no issue on their end after checking the lines in affected buildings, attributing the power outage to "internal issues" at Penn.
As of publication time, all affected buildings remain without power.
In an email sent to Harnwell, Fisher Hassenfeld, and Ware residents around 7:08 p.m., Residential Services said that they were aware of the outage and were investigating it alongside PECO. Residential Services wrote that not all elevators in Harnwell were functioning due to the power outage, which also affected the WiFi and phone service in the building.
"We encourage residents to keep their fridges/freezers closed until power is restored," the email said. "Residents are also encouraged to use staircases in lieu of elevators as not all elevators are running."
Commons and all sections of the Quad also lost power. Commons was evacuated, and no one is allowed to enter the building as of publication.
In an email to the Penn community around 8:15 p.m., Penn Dining said that Commons, Gourmet Grocer, and Starbucks would be closed until further notice, adding that it would issue updates relating to service on Monday morning.
Penn's Division of Public Safety and Facilities and Real Estate Services did not respond to request for comment.
College sophomore Emily Monfort was in her room on the second floor at Harnwell College House when the lights went out.
“I got a notification because I work at the Quad that there’s also a power outage happening, and I know they have the Penn Police there trying to figure out what's going on, but there's not many details that were exposed to us yet,” she said.
Monfort also reported that three elevators in Harnwell are down.
Engineering first-year Maria Ramos said that she was doing laundry in Speakman hall in the Quad when the lights went out.
"Everyone went to the hall to see what was going on, but Speakman didn't get a notification," she said. "There was also a fire alarm going off in some parts of the Quad as well, in Riepe and near the Morris area, I'm pretty sure."
Ramos added that the lights were flashing in various areas of the Quad as the alarms were going off.
Students in Harnwell were told power in the entire west side of campus had been lost, while students in the Quad were informed that authorities were attempting to bring back power at around 6:30 p.m.
Photo Editor Abhiram Juvvadi contributed reporting.
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