{
  "id": "2024-05-24-university-of-alaska-anchorage-ammonia-leak",
  "slug": "university-of-alaska-anchorage-ammonia-leak-2024-05-24",
  "institution": {
    "name": "University of Alaska Anchorage",
    "shortName": "UAA",
    "state": "AK",
    "type": "public-r2",
    "alertSystemName": "UA Alert"
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2024-05-24",
    "endDate": "2024-05-29",
    "type": "hazmat",
    "cleryCategory": "emergency-notification",
    "headline": "Potential ammonia leak from an ice rink closes several buildings",
    "headlinePublic": "Potential ammonia leak from an ice rink closes several buildings",
    "summary": "Over Memorial Day weekend 2024, the University of Alaska Anchorage's Incident Management Team responded to the [potential for an ammonia leak](https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/2024/05/27/potential-an-ammonia-leak-avis-alaska-sports-complex/) tied to the ice-plant refrigeration system at the AVIS Alaska Sports Complex. As maintenance crews worked on remediation, UAA evacuated and closed three buildings (the Sports Complex, Student Union, and General Support Services / Enrollment Services) plus two sections of the campus walkway known as the [Spine](https://www.thenorthernlight.org/stories/risk-of-ammonia-leak-causes-mass-building-closures-at-uaa-a-timeline). The buildings and Spine [reopened May 29](https://www.uaa.alaska.edu/news/archive/2024/05/imt-update.cshtml) after officials determined there was no additional leak risk.",
    "outcome": "No injuries and no identified public-health risk; the Anchorage Fire Department reported no critical concerns. UAA reopened the AVIS Alaska Sports Complex, Student Union, General Support Services, Enrollment Services and the Spine on Wednesday, May 29, 2024, for regular hours.",
    "resolution": "all-clear"
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestampApprox": "May 24, 2024 (AKDT)",
      "channel": "email",
      "verbatimText": "",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": false,
      "sourceDescription": "Reconstructed from The Northern Light timeline and UAA IMT updates; exact alert text not published",
      "annotations": []
    },
    {
      "sequence": 2,
      "type": "update",
      "timestampApprox": "May 27, 2024 (AKDT)",
      "channel": "email",
      "verbatimText": "",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": false,
      "sourceDescription": "Reconstructed from Alaska's News Source reporting on May 27, 2024 that crews were isolating and remediating the leak risk",
      "annotations": []
    },
    {
      "sequence": 3,
      "type": "all-clear",
      "timestampApprox": "May 29, 2024 (AKDT)",
      "channel": "email",
      "verbatimText": "UAA’s Incident Management Team (IMT) is reopened the Avis Alaska Sports Complex (AASC), Student Union, General Support Services and Enrollment Services, and the Spine leading in and out of those buildings on Wednesday, May 29, for regular hours of operation.\n\nOn Friday, May 25, IMT identified the potential for an ammonia leak within the Ice Plant system and subsequently began an active response to ensure the safety of our campus community and U-MED neighbors. Working diligently with local agencies and the Anchorage Fire Department throughout the weekend, IMT successfully averted the potential for an ammonia leak. We are confident there is no longer a health or safety concern for our Anchorage campus or surrounding community.\n\nThe safety and well-being of our students, faculty and staff, as well as our U-MED and Anchorage communities, are of utmost importance to the university and IMT. To read IMT’s May 25 update, please visit Green & Gold News. If you have any additional questions or concerns contact John Huffman, interim director of UAA Environmental Health & Safety/Risk Management Support, at 907-310-2917.\n\nSincerely,\n\nUAA Incident Management Team",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://www.uaa.alaska.edu/news/archive/2024/05/imt-update.cshtml",
      "sourceDescription": "UAA Green & Gold News: IMT update — signed Incident Management Team community letter",
      "annotations": [
        "Reconstructed all-clear: a May 29, 2024 communication in UAA's Green and Gold indicated no additional risk of ammonia leaks, and all closed buildings plus the Spine reopened for regular hours.",
        "The all-clear explicitly reopens the named buildings and the Spine, distinguishing it from the earlier 'closed until further notice' messages.",
        "2026-09-13 catch-up b21 P2 .edu. Dual HTML extract of the signed IMT letter through Sincerely / UAA Incident Management Team. Independent second-blind sha agreement. Seq 1-2 reconstructed UAA Alerts stay unconfirmed. First burst not newly confirmed: no 25-pass."
      ],
      "characterCount": 1167
    }
  ],
  "context": "The AVIS Alaska Sports Complex at UAA houses an ice rink whose refrigeration plant uses ammonia, a hazard that can force evacuations if it leaks. According to [Alaska's News Source](https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/2024/05/27/potential-an-ammonia-leak-avis-alaska-sports-complex/), UAA's Incident Management Team responded to the potential for an ammonia leak and, as crews isolated and remediated the plant, became concerned about the potential for another leak. [The Northern Light](https://www.thenorthernlight.org/stories/risk-of-ammonia-leak-causes-mass-building-closures-at-uaa-a-timeline), UAA's student paper, published a timeline showing the closures spanned the AVIS Alaska Sports Complex, the Student Union, General Support Services, Enrollment Services and two sections of the Spine, the campus's iconic indoor walkway. UAA stated it had not identified public-health risks and the Anchorage Fire Department reported no critical concerns. An [official UAA IMT update](https://www.uaa.alaska.edu/news/archive/2024/05/imt-update.cshtml) and a May 29 Green and Gold communication confirmed there was no additional leak risk and reopened the buildings and Spine for regular hours. The verbatim text of UAA's notifications was not published, so the alerts here are reconstructed and marked unconfirmed.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "An ice-rink ammonia refrigeration system, not a classroom hazard, drove a multi-building closure spanning athletics, the student union and enrollment services",
    "Because the closures linked to the connecting Spine walkway, the hazard effectively cut through the physical center of campus",
    "UAA repeatedly stressed no identified public-health risk while keeping buildings closed for days over a holiday weekend, balancing reassurance and caution",
    "No verbatim UAA notification text was published, so the alert sequence is reconstructed and flagged unconfirmed"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Potential for an ammonia leak at AVIS Alaska Sports Complex - Alaska's News Source",
      "url": "https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/2024/05/27/potential-an-ammonia-leak-avis-alaska-sports-complex/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Risk of ammonia leak causes mass building closures at UAA: A timeline - The Northern Light",
      "url": "https://www.thenorthernlight.org/stories/risk-of-ammonia-leak-causes-mass-building-closures-at-uaa-a-timeline",
      "type": "student-newspaper"
    },
    {
      "title": "IMT Update: Building Closures - University of Alaska Anchorage",
      "url": "https://www.uaa.alaska.edu/news/archive/2024/05/imt-update.cshtml",
      "type": "official-archive"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "medium",
  "tags": [
    "hazmat",
    "ammonia-leak",
    "ice-plant",
    "building-closure",
    "alaska",
    "uaa",
    "anchorage",
    "emergency-notification"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-05-28",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-09-27",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}