CORRECTION: The associate dean of the library is Mary Afifi, not Mary Finley.

UPDATE at 2 p.m.: The fire alarm was set off by burned popcorn in the library’s kitchen, according to Christina Villalobos, public information officer for CSUN’s police department.

Students were evacuated from the Oviatt Library today around 1:10 p.m. when a fire alarm went off in the building.

Dozens of people milled around the courtyard in front of the library as employees in orange vests guarded the entrances, keeping students at a safe distance until the situation was assessed.

“I hope they open again soon,” said Nazanin Yashar, a senior marketing major. “I have a test tonight.”

Yashar and her friend Ani Nersesian, a business management major, had been studying on the third floor. They said they heard the alarm and were then asked by a library staff member to leave the building.

By 1:30 p.m. The “all-clear” was given and students began to quickly reenter the building, eager to return to their work.

According to Mary Finley, associate dean of the library, the smoke alarm went off when it detected smoke in the basement, possibly the kitchen.

“We’ll have to investigate further to see what set it off,” she said.