At about 3 a.m. this morning, Village at Centennial Square residents woke up to the blaring of a fire alarm and no electrical power.

Students, some with their pets, filed outside of the buildings bundled in robes, pajamas and sandals at 45 degrees Fahrenheit. Multiple alarms were heard from surrounding buildings.

“I did think it was another building,” said Alexis Morales, a San Francisco State University public health student. “Then it kept going and going and going. And then once it hit our building, I thought it was gonna be a 10-minute thing and it turned into two hours.”

According to an email sent on Thursday to the “Campus Community,” but not students, SFSU buildings around would receive electrical repairs. The Village’s test was scheduled for 1:30-3:30 a.m.

Residential aides stood outside the building and reassured students that they “were doing the best they could.” 

The University Police Department was at the scene when students were evacuating and could be seen walking the hallways from the windows outside, but communication was left vague.

Some residents resorted to taking shelter in the hallways of Towers at Centennial Square.

Jonah Glass-Hussain, a chemistry student, overheard students and resident assistants discussing a possible time for returning to their beds, but it wasn’t promising.

“[They said] it’s gonna take at least 30 minutes to get the power back on, and they can’t fix a lot of the stuff until the power is back on,” said Glass-Hussain.

Frustration over a disturbed sleep reflected a larger issue for some students. Chloe Lee, a French student, said she feels that her money spent on housing is going to waste.

“Honestly, I was annoyed because I paid about $1,500 to get into the Village, and there’s a power outage and a fire alarm,” Lee said. “I think I deserve better maintenance for this price.”

At 5:20 a.m., students were allowed to return to their dorm rooms without alarms and the power back on.