In the Summer of 1988, the fire alarm system in North Halls was replaced with a new system, which is supposed to be more modern and reliable. A similar system had been in use for some time in West Halls and East Halls, and problems with it were apparent, but it was installed in North anyway, replacing the system which had worked well for 31 years.

During the last four years, before the new system was installed, there was never a false alarm in North. Since the beginning of the Fall semester, there have been several false alarms which have caused the buildings to be evacuated.

On Monday night, the alarm rang three times in Holmes, twice in Leete and once in Runkle. While I know the importance of evacuation when the alarm goes off, these false alarms are eroding the credibility of the alarm system.

The false alarms are not being pulled as a prank, but are caused by defects in the system itself. Why was it necessary to replace the old, reliable system with a system that is so prone to false alarms?

If there ever is a fire in one of the buildings, many of the residents probably will remain inside thinking it is "just another false alarm," putting themselves in great danger.

If Penn State is serious about protecting the safety of dorm residents, it should do whatever is necessary to remove the unreliability in the system.