The Campus Telecommunications office is still investigating the root cause of “the great ring” two days ago in which every telephone on the campus telecom system rang at the same time.
“It was almost like something in a movie,” said senior Graphic Arts student Shaundra Jenkins, a student worker in the Provost’s Office. “The same time my phone went off, half a dozen others went off up and down the hall. My first thought was that it was some sort of office-wide disaster notification.”
Instead, anyone who answered the calls heard a sound described variously as white noise, whispering, ocean waves, or crackling fire. Some people reported nausea or vertigo after answering the calls, although the President’s Offices issued a statement yesterday assuring the campus community there was no traceable link to health risk.
The lines remained unusable for a full 17 minutes before Campus Telecommunications took the drastic step of cycling the power on the entire system and rebooting it. The President’s Office has requested Campus Telecommunications issue a full report within 30 days.