Baby Boy Grabs Alarm,
Hundreds Flee RUHS

Randolph Union High School was humming Tuesday night. A holiday concert occupied the auditorium, and both gymnasiums were full—with the varsity boys’ basketball game in one and a gymnastics meet in the other.

This was the scene at about 8 p.m., when a 10-month-old baby boy, reaching out for something to grab, found the lever of a wall-mounted fire alarm. The predictable result drove everyone—audiences, performers, and athletes—outdoors. It also brought the Randolph Village Fire Department to the scene.

School officials quickly realized that the alarm was accidental, but safety protocol required everyone to exit the building—including bare-footed gymnasts and sweaty forwards and guards—and to stay out until the alarm was silenced and re-set. At the high school gym, the players were allowed to re--enter before the rest of the crowd.

Within about 15 minutes of the alarm sounding, all events had resumed. RUHS Principal John Holmes estimated that there somewhere between 650-850 people were in the building at the time.

There was a little wrinkle in the auditorium, where there have been ongoing problems with the complex dimmer system that controls the lights. Holmes said student light technicians were unable to get the house lights to come up when the alarm sounded, though they had worked earlier.

The alarm lever in question is mounted in the corner of the senior high gymnasium, just above a pile of folded tumbling mats. A mom with two small children—one an unhappy 10-month-old—had left the bleachers during the second quarter of the basketball game, and retreated to the corner with her two children. She had plunked both kids on those mats, and was guarding them closely. However the red alarm mechanism proved an irresistible draw for the baby and he managed to get to it before mom could stop him.

Principal Holmes said afterwards that the mats may be moved from the corner.