Power Outage Disrupts Research at Western University

A four-day power outage at Western University in London, Ont., has led to the loss of invaluable research samples, stalled experiments, and raised concerns among biology students and faculty about whether the university can safeguard millions of dollars’ worth of scientific work.

The Biological & Geological Sciences Building, Materials Sciences Addition, Chemistry Building and Natural Sciences Centre have been running on backup power since Friday following an incident at a campus power substation.

Western reported that power was restored to most buildings Friday evening; however, the four affected buildings still rely on backup power while crews carry out repairs. The university stated it has limited access to these buildings “out of an abundance of caution,” and is collaborating with students, faculty, and staff to resolve individual issues, including providing access for research needs.

Students and faculty noted that this marks the fifth significant outage impacting biology research facilities since August 2025.

“We’re going to be a laughing stock,” said Beth Mac Dougall-Shackleton, a biology professor.

“Not just my Canadian colleagues, but other colleagues that I’ve talked to in so-called ‘developing countries’ – they all have much more reliable access to power than we do here.”

Beth Mac Dougall-Shackleton, a biology professor at Western, says the university will become a laughing stock if access to power remains this unreliable. (Submitted by Beth Mac Dougall-Shackleton)

Mac Dougall-Shackleton emphasized that biology research relies heavily on maintaining stable conditions for living organisms and temperature-sensitive materials. Instead, growth chambers housing insects and plants are overheating; freezers containing research samples are thawing due to insufficient backup power; and researchers can’t access animals needed for their studies.

The outages have also compelled the department to replace thousands of dollars’ worth of reagents, enzymes, and other essential materials for research efforts, she added.

However, the most significant losses cannot be quantified in monetary terms.

Graduate students have dedicated months or even years breeding insects, cultivating plants and developing bacterial strains-all of which may now no longer be viable.

“You cannot even put a dollar amount on those samples that have been lost,” said Matheus Sanita Lima, a fifth-year Ph D candidate in biology and chair of the Society of Biology Graduate Students.

Matheus Sanita Lima, a fifth-year Ph D candidate and chair of the Society of Biology Graduate Students at Western University, says irreplaceable samples have been lost during the power outage. (Submitted by Matheus Sanita Lima)

Sanita Lima explained that they’ve lost irreplaceable samples-some from species that are already extinct-as well as collections dating back decades and materials from long-term cohort studies that can’t simply be recreated.

For graduate students adhering to strict research timelines, these losses could translate into additional months or even years of work ahead.

Students and Faculty Demand Change

Sanita Lima and Mac Dougall-Shackleton mentioned they’ve consistently voiced their concerns with Western’s administration during both this recent outage as well as past ones but feel frustrated by the responses they’ve received.

“Nobody seems to agree that it’s the responsibility of a university to keep the power on,” Mac Dougall-Shackleton remarked.</P

A meeting held on Monday saw graduate students alongside faculty members agreeing to reach out to their respective unions regarding these ongoing issues. They believe Western’s management of repeated outages might conflict with provisions in their collective agreements mandating support for teaching and research infrastructure from the university’s side.</P

They’re also urging Western leadership commit towards making several changes moving forward.</P

In terms of immediate actions required-they want quicker communication during outages along with transparent updates about restoration timelines from university officials.</P

Their long-term vision includes modernizing campus electrical systems along with increasing maintenance staffing levels especially as enrollment continues growing across various programs offered at Western.

Potential Reputational Harm & Funding Risks

Mac Dougall-Shackleton expressed concern over how these persistent outages might damage Western’s standing among its research collaborators-donors-and taxpayers who financially back science initiatives within academia.

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She cautioned too how they could threaten significant funding opportunities available.

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Research involving vertebrate animals conducted across Canadian institutions falls under regulations enforced via Canadian Council on Animal Care guidelines If any loss occurs concerning such status-it risks around $60 million annually provided through Tri-Council funding streams she warned.

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“Financially speaking-that’s crucial! And it surprises me greatly how little attention this receives.”

Meanwhile-the ongoing blackouts hinder researchers’ ability accessing animal facilities independently secured via electronic card-access systems.

As such-Mac Dougall Shackleton detailed how frequent calls needing assistance getting entry force them contacting special constables repeatedly just so they can bring portable air conditioning units ensuring animals remain cool enough throughout those periods without electric service.

“It makes me sick thinking about all risks we face!”

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