During the dedication of the newly renovated Cunningham Hall Friday, Jan. 20, Northwestern Oklahoma State University student Shayna Miller said, “New buildings come with fun surprises. When we first moved over to Cunningham Hall, the fire alarms went off at least twice a week for at least two weeks. This means two things. One, our new fire safety system definitely works, and two, our students will definitely know what to do in case there should ever be an emergency.”

Ten days later, the evacuation was real. At 12:18 a.m. the Alva Fire Department, Alva EMS and Alva Police Department were dispat...