A fire destroyed the University of South Florida’s marine science laboratory building on the St. Petersburg campus late Saturday, sending up plumes of smoke and prompting evacuations. By Sunday, university officials were warning that the structure could be a total loss, though no injuries were reported and no hazardous materials escaped.
“Our recovery teams are working with the College of Marine Science to prioritize key research material and equipment for salvage assessment when the building is cleared,” USF President Moez Limayem wrote in a message to the campus community Sunday. He called the damage “extensive” and said assessments were ongoing.
The fire’s cause remained undetermined as of Sunday. Classes and examinations that had been scheduled in the building are being moved to other locations on campus, Limayem said. The building housed laboratory and research space for the College of Marine Science, whose work focuses on oceanography, coastal ecology, and related fields.