Run out of the library!
By ElicBxn
@ElicBxn (64169)
United States
January 20, 2011 9:56pm CST
Well, after leaving work and finishing with my doctor appointment, I still had over an hour to kill before I could pick up my cat from the vet.
"I'll go to the library!" I thought.
After looking at some audio books, I sat down to stitch for a while and try to decide to pick up one or more of those books I had looked at.
But, I hadn't been there 10 minutes when the fire alarm went off.
I grabbed my scissors, my kit and stitching and went the way the staff member pointed me.
Out the back door we went. I walked around the building, got in my car and left just as the fire engine arrived. And that seemed a bit long to me because the station was less than a block up the street from the library!
Still, I had over an hour to wait, so I stopped for some hot chocolate at a nearby Starbucks and waited in the vet's parking lot.
You ever been chased out of a public place like that before?
I was at Walmart one time when they evacuated the place...
7 people like this
15 responses
@dragon54u (31633)
• United States
21 Jan 11
I've never had that experience. The only fire alarm I've experienced was drills we had in K-12 school. I always wondered what it would be like as an adult to be in a fire evacuation and I hope everyone was calm and quick.
2 people like this
@alaskanray (4636)
• United States
21 Jan 11
Yup, that's about all my experience, too, dragon.
1 person likes this
@p1kef1sh (45681)
•
21 Jan 11
I had to evacuate the Cathedral three times last year because smike sensors in the roof went off. Getting hundreds of people out, some of whom were in the roof itself is quite a job. I was once in Tesco (like Wal-Mart) when the fire doors automatically shut and we were locked inside!!! Fortunately they opened one of the doors and we all got out. But that was scary. I thought that the idea was to evacuate and then close the doors! I was amazed by the number of people who then just left without completing their shopping. When we went back inside it was like a shopping cart wreck! Carts everywhere. LOL.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (169439)
• United States
21 Jan 11
I got to sit out a tornado in the back hall at Wal Mart one time. I do not think I have ever really had to leave a building because of a fire alarm. At least I do not remember doing so.
@ElicBxn (64169)
• United States
21 Jan 11
that must'a been interesting (not)
I had to hang out in the hall at the office for a while, well, I'm no fool, the power went out, leaving only emergency lights, but I took my crocheting out and sat and worked under the light - everyone else thought I was very clever!
1 person likes this
@Hatley (163772)
• Garden Grove, California
21 Jan 11
ElicBxn I bet it was a false alarm was it not? I used to work in the tustin branch of the orange county library. one day the fire alarm went off and toxic fumes were pouring into the maiun part of the lobbie so of course as we were in the civid the fire dept was five minutes away.?The fire truck got there just as an angry branch manager was yelling atg a mexican gardener who had pared his old lawn mower right
under an air intake vent into the main library and the fumes from the
faulty lawn mower were filling the library and the fire alarm had to be shut off twice before she got him to understand enough English to move his lawnmower awary from the ventilation system.so we did not have a fire after all but all us workers got a break standing around yhaking and enjoying some fresh air.We were all very glad that it was a false alarm.
2 people like this
@ElicBxn (64169)
• United States
21 Jan 11
I really have no idea, I didn't hang around to find out, but NOBODY was mowing today! And this library used to be a movie theater, so there are no real grassy areas around it, just the ditch on the other side of the parking lot, that was full of water from the recent rains.
1 person likes this
@ANTIQUELADY (36440)
• United States
21 Jan 11
no, thankfully i have never had to leave a place like that. Glad it wasn't more serious than it was.
@mentalward (14690)
• United States
21 Jan 11
I was also in Walmart once when they evacuated the building. Someone had "tested" some pepper spray because they were curious about it. (This was back when Walmart sold pepper spray... as far as I know, they don't anymore.)
I just remembered actually being locked in a mall once. The mall wasn't closing, they were told to lock customers in by the health department because there was a chemical cloud in the air that was poisonous to breathe in. The health department didn't want the customers going outside right into this noxious cloud. I remember seeing it in the sky just before I walked into the mall but I didn't know what it was at the time. It was a giant, light blue splotch in a dark sky. I wasn't in the mall a full minute when I saw employees locking the doors and asked what was going on. That was pretty scary! We were locked in there for about two hours. At least there were lots of places to shop while I was stuck there. 
@scififan43 (2434)
• United States
13 May 11
I am sure I have had to leave a public place after an alarm of some kind. I don't rember when and why but I am sure that maybe at least once I had to do so at least once.
@scififan43 (2434)
• United States
14 May 11
a burnt popcorn bag sounder rediculius, but when a hazmat team shows up, that is serious.
1 person likes this
@cerebellum (3863)
• United States
21 Jan 11
The only time I experienced anything close to that was in school. We had fire drills all the time, but never any fire. That must have been scary. With any luck I hope it was a drill, maybe that's what took the fire department so long. On second thought I don't think they respond to drills.
@CatsandDogs (13963)
• United States
25 Jan 11
OMG Elic.... What an eventful day you've had! Here you go to the library to kill some time and instead, you get excitement added to your day! lol No, I can't say that I've ever been run out of a place like that nor do I want to either! It would scare me to pieces! It's one of my fears, something like this or a robbery happening and being that I can't hear well at all, I'd do something I'm not suppose to do and get hurt. I'm constantly on the alert and watching things and everybody around me to be sure all is well and good or should I be running......
1 person likes this
