Stranger things are seemingly happening at the Texas Tech campus as a mysterious fire forced students to leave campus. On Wednesday evening, the university in Lubbock was hit with the disaster when a manhole exploded. With no traceable cause to the calamity, the institute has been forced to clear out the students in a bid to prevent injuries.
Live footage capturing a view of the strange blast was posted on Reddit. The clip showed green flames flaring out of a manhole in the campus area. The pressure from the fire even caused the heavy lids covering the tunnel to come off. This explosion reportedly sparked a series of fires across the campus, triggering power outages in the area.
Per the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, the source of the fire remains unknown. However, it is currently under investigation. According to a public information officer for the Texas Police Department, the incident started around 7 p.m. on Wednesday. The first explosion happened in a manhole at the engineering key in the central part of the campus.
In response to the disaster, Lubbock Fire Rescue services and police arrived at the scene and discovered more manholes with fires coming out. The unfortunate event led the institution to issue directives for the evacuation of students. They also shut down the school premises temporarily. A statement from the institution’s president, Lawrence Schovanec, read:
“To allow for the thorough check of campus infrastructure and ensure safety, we will close campus on Thursday, March 13, and Friday, March 14. All classes would be canceled and all nonessential personnel should work remotely if they are able to.”
Additionally, the president revealed that the fire had been put out, crediting the efforts of the police and the fire services.
The incident aroused concern from Reddit users, and some took to figuring out what caused the colored flame.
“Likely due to some copper piping or something that got ignited and vaporized,” one fan theorized. However, another argued, “or a devious chemistry student who learned something cool this week.”
Others, however, made light of the situation, sharing hilarious jokes.
“I learned one thing from Disney movies: that lime green color signifies the presence and activity of a bad guy,” one comment read.
“No, no science be damned. This is hell rising up in the one place in the universe it would be feasible to do so,” this user mocked.
“Oh great, someone opened the Texan chamber of secrets,” this Redditor chipped in.
While the students evacuated the campus, there has been no record of casualties from the incident.
