Four hour Friday night blackout at Carnatic halls

Residents of all Carnatic halls were faced with a night-time power cut lasting over four hours. 

Freshers had no power or hot water from approximately 18:30 to 22:40, after electricity problems had plagued the halls of residence for two days, bringing unwelcome disruption to pre-drink sessions on every floor.

Carnatic residents view for 4 hours….

On Thursday morning, McNair Hall was hit with an electricity fault that lead to the whole site being put on “a temporary limited supply of power”.

Kettles and toasters were confiscated from kitchens and students were asked to “refrain from using electrical appliances in your bedrooms”.

A hot-drinks station was set up in Carnatic House.

Yesterday evening, another email was sent to residents explaining there would be “a possibility of an interruption to the power supply to the whole of Carnatic site” between 18:30 and 21:00 while essential maintenance work was completed.

In reality, the power was switched off at around 18:30 and failed to return until 22:40, with little information given to frightened residents.

Back to the stone age

Freshers getting ready for a night out were left with no music and no lighting for pre-drinks, while those staying in had no films or television and no cups of tea or cooking facilities.

Good joke mate

Dan Tominey, who lives in McNair Hall, said: “the power cut was unacceptable.

“To choose a Friday evening to turn off the power is beyond belief.

“It’s arguably the single most important time period in a young adult’s week.”

Esme Parkinson from Morton Hall added: “During the power cut, I was starting to feel a little like Gollum after a couple of hours sitting in the pitch black.”

Freshers are now making the most of the return to power by using all electrical appliances and lights simultaneously.