Students finishing last-minute art and journalism projects were told to evacuate each of the four connected buildings along McKinley Avenue around 3:15 a.m. Thursday due to a gas leak near the loading dock at the Atrium.
Around 4:25, they were allowed back into the buildings.
Custodians could see natural gas spraying from a three- to four-inch pipe near the loading dock, where they are ordinarily told to report during a fire alarm.
"I guess it was spraying everywhere," said Scott Mantock, a custodian at Ball State. "We try to have the students and employees get out of the building and to the east side of the road and away from it if it were to explode."
About 50 students and custodians were evacuated and then directed to stand near Shafer Tower. Custodians were told to go to Bracken Library and wait until they could return to their shift. Students were welcome to join them, and about a dozen turned to first-floor computers to finish homework or browse Facebook.
At 4:04 a.m., nearly an hour after the evacuation, the university issued an emergency email and text message saying, "BSU Gas leak at AJ."
People were urged to avoid campus in the area from Petty Road to Riverside Avenue, including McKinley Avenue to the east and Meadow Lane to the west.
The message said that necessary buildings had been evacuated. Custodians confirmed that the affected buildings included the Art and Journalism Building, the David Letterman Communication and Media Building and the Robert Bell Building.
A second message from the university around 4:30 a.m. stated that the gas leak had been resolved and people may "return to normal activities."
Students said when they heard blaring sirens inside the buildings, their main concern was taking time away from their projects.
Freshman Laura Herron was finishing her portfolio for her Drawing One class.
"It's a little bit annoying because I was wrapping it all up," she said. "We have to go back and finish this. I'm probably not going to bed."
Senior Megan Hesler was working on a silk screening project. She said she wasn't sure what was going on when she heard the sirens.
"I didn't know if it was real or not because it's so late at night," she said. "I was so close to being done with my project. I was looking forward to being done."
When given the option to wait outside or go to the library, she said she chose to stay near the bell tower.
"My project's due tomorrow, but I can easily get it done tonight," she said. "I have one more color to print."
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