Fire,flood cause City Hall damage

Residents of City Hall evacuated at about 3 a.m. Saturday after a grease fire broke out in room 1217. Sprinklers went off in the hall following the fire and water leaked into several rooms from the 12th to the ninth floors.

Officials cleaned out the room with “wet vacuums” and other equipment Saturday and Sunday. Furniture and student belongings were damaged in several rooms.

Members of the D.C. Fire Department, University Police and Metropolitan Police were at the scene.

Junior Daniel Mesznik, City Hall president, said there was damage to room 1117 and, as of Sunday morning two elevators were not operating.

Sophomore Matt McDonough, who lives next door to 1217, said he was woken up by UPD officers knocking on his door at about 3 a.m. McDonough said he was told a team would be cleaning up water that seeped into his living room.

The Community Living and Learning Center provided housing for students whose rooms had water damage.

Officials were unavailable for comment to discuss property damage.

-Julie Gordon

OAS holds date auction

The Organization for African Students raised $1,600 for African children’s charities at the organization’s annual date auction Friday night.

The Marvin Center ballroom was packed to above its seating capacity, with more than 145 people in attendance bidding on 30 students, said OAS President Mohammed Abdul.

The OAS then rented out a restaurant in Virginia, where date-auction couples could have a “group” date.

Amnesty International sends cards to prisoners

Amnesty International will sponsor its annual card-making event Monday from noon to 5:30 p.m. in the first floor lobby of Marvin Center. Students can make cards that will be sent to “prisoners of conscience” “Prisoners of conscience are those who have been jailed for the peaceful expression of their beliefs or because of their sex, color, language or ethnicity,” said Katie Marts, president of Amnesty at GW.

Cards will be sent to political prisoners in Vietnam, the around the world.Democratic Republic of Congo, Guatemala and Belarus.

OCS offers alternative spring break

Students interested in Alternative Spring Break, a week-long service experience that sends students to locations around the country, can submit applications starting Dec. 2.

This is the first year the Office of Community Service is coordinating a campus-wide program, as opposed to individual groups planning their own trips.

“I am really excited about this new initiative and its potential to affect the GW community,” said Laura Serico, assistant program coordinator for the Office of Community Service.

The 45 students accepted to the program will be sent to five separate locations domestically.

The trip will cost $300 per student, with $150 required as a deposit to secure a space. Leaders and participants will make efforts to raise the balance of the trip costs through fundraising, Serico said.

For a list of trips and service projects, stop by the Office of Community Service in Marvin Center 436.

-Rachel Gould