A George Washington University student is in critical condition Tuesday afternoon, after being discovered in a ninth-floor dorm room that was in flames early Tuesday morning.
The student, a male freshman from Connecticut, was taken to GW Hospital at 5 a.m. after the fire was discovered, with severe burns, according to the GW Hatchet. Once the student was stabilized, he was transported to the Washington Hospital Center burn unit.
According to GW Director of Media Relations Terry Schario, another student noticed smoke emanating from the room and alerted University Police. The fire alarm was sounded, and Thurston Hall's 959 residents were evacuated, Schario said.
At 8 a.m., after about three hours, residents were allowed back into the building, Schario said. However, she added, 15 residents in five rooms are still not allowed in, due to damages caused by the fire and by sprinklers. No other injuries have been reported
Schario said that the student's roommate was not home at the time of the fire and the student was in the room alone when he was found. Schario also said that the Metropolitan Fire Department is still investigating the fire, which they said was caused when the student's bedsheets ignited after coming in contact with a portable electric grill.
