The 965 students who call Creswell Hall home have been introduced to what may be the biggest headache of their freshman year – the fire alarm.

The freshman dormitory’s fire alarm has gone off three times in the past three weeks.

The first siren sounded at 3:51 a.m. on Aug. 13 – the morning after move-in day – when a fire alarm station in the center of the fourth floor was pulled by an unknown individual.

“The alarm went off at about four in the morning,” said Tommy McConnell, a freshman from Atlanta. “We had to jump out of bed, move outside and listen to a big lecture.”

“They gave us a huge speech saying whoever did this would get caught and prosecuted,” said Annie Cimino, a freshman from Albany.

Cimino said she did not believe the culprit had been caught.

This alarm also interrupted sleep for many freshman girls participating in sorority rush.

“The first one took place during rush, when we wake up at five in the morning,” said Amanda Malasky, a freshman from Bethesda, Md.

“After we got back inside, I got an hour of sleep before I had to get up again,” she said.

Residents have kept their hands off the fire alarms since the Aug. 13 incident, but Creswell has experienced two additional fire alarms since then. Both were triggered by a fire detector on the seventh floor D Wing.

The cause of the most recent alarm, taking place at about 10:15 p.m. on Aug. 26, was believed to be a dusty detector head, according to an e-mail sent by University Housing to Creswell residents. That detector head was immediately replaced, the e-mail stated.

Each fire alarm results in an evacuation of the nine-story building, usually lasting between 25 to 45 minutes.

Creswell residents must line up in the parking lot across from Russell Hall. Finley Street, which separates Russell Hall and Creswell Hall, must remain open to allow access for fire trucks.

“You have to show your student ID card to get back inside,” Cimino said. “If you forget it, you’re out of luck.”

According to the Creswell Resident Guide, all residents must show their UGA MyID card to gain access to the residence hall.

Residents have been venting their frustrations with the fire alarms through several Facebook groups, such as “Creswell Fire alarms Rock My Face off!! …… not!”

After the Aug. 13 fire alarm, all Creswell residents were sent e-mails reminding them of the legal ramifications of tampering with fire alarms.

Scott Oliver, area coordinator for Creswell, refused to comment after several attempts by The Red & Black to reach him.

“Causing a fire alarm activation or tampering with fire safety equipment (e.g. pulling a fire alarm) when there is no real fire is grounds for review of both civil and university judicial action,” the e-mail stated.

“My initial thought after receiving that e-mail?” James Brierton, a freshmen from Long Island, N.Y., said, “boy, this is going to be a long year.”