A power outage lasting four days at Western University in London, Ontario, has led to the loss of invaluable research samples, caused delays in experiments, and raised concerns among biology students and faculty about the university’s ability to safeguard millions in scientific research.
Since Friday, the Biological & Geological Sciences Building, Materials Sciences Addition, Chemistry Building, and Natural Sciences Centre have been relying on backup power due to a disruption at a campus power substation.
Western reported that power was restored to most facilities on Friday evening; however, the four impacted buildings are still on backup power as repair work continues. The university has limited access to these buildings “out of an abundance of caution” and is collaborating with students, faculty, and staff to address specific issues, including facilitating access for research needs.
Students and faculty assert that this incident marks the fifth significant outage impacting biology research facilities since August 2025.
“We’re going to be a laughing stock,” remarked Beth MacDougall-Shackleton, a professor of biology.
“Not only my Canadian peers, but also colleagues in so-called ‘developing countries’ that I’ve spoken with—they all enjoy much more reliable power access than we do here.”
Beth MacDougall-Shackleton, a biology professor at Western, expresses concerns about the university’s reliability in providing power. (Submitted by Beth MacDougall-Shackleton)
MacDougall-Shackleton emphasized that biology research relies heavily on stable environments for living organisms and temperature-sensitive materials. Instead, growth chambers for insects and plants are experiencing overheating issues, while freezers containing research samples are thawing due to inadequate backup power, and researchers have been unable to access animals for their studies.
The outages have also compelled the department to replace thousands of dollars worth of reagents, enzymes, and other research materials, she noted.
Nonetheless, the most significant losses cannot be quantified in monetary terms.
Graduate students have dedicated months or even years to breeding insects, cultivating plants, and developing bacterial strains, many of which may now be nonviable.
“You can’t even assign a dollar value to the samples that have been lost,” stated Matheus Sanita Lima, a fifth-year PhD candidate in biology and chair of the Society of Biology Graduate Students.
Matheus Sanita Lima, a fifth-year PhD candidate and chair of the Society of Biology Graduate Students at Western University, shares that irreplaceable samples have been lost due to the power outage. (Submitted by Matheus Sanita Lima)
Sanita Lima indicated that the department has suffered losses of irreplaceable samples, including specimens from extinct species, collections from the 1970s, and materials related to long-term cohort studies that cannot be reproduced.
For graduate students adhering to strict research timelines, these losses could result in months or even years of additional work.
Students and faculty urge action
Sanita Lima and MacDougall-Shackleton mentioned that they have consistently voiced their concerns to Western’s administration during this outage and previous ones, but have felt frustrated by the responses received.
“It seems that no one agrees that it is the university’s responsibility to ensure a reliable power supply,” MacDougall-Shackleton remarked.
During a meeting on Monday, graduate students, faculty, and staff decided to reach out to their respective unions. They believe that Western’s management of these recurrent outages may violate provisions in their collective agreements that mandate the university to maintain the necessary infrastructure to support teaching and research.
Additionally, they are calling on Western to commit to implementing a series of changes.
In the short term, they desire the university to enhance communication during outages by providing quicker and more transparent updates, including regular information on restoration timelines.
In the long run, they are advocating for Western to invest in modernizing the campus electrical infrastructure and increasing maintenance staffing, especially as the university continues to grow.
Damage to reputation and potential funding risks
MacDougall-Shackleton warned that ongoing outages could harm Western’s reputation among research collaborators, donors, and taxpayers who support the university’s scientific efforts.
She also cautioned that it could endanger significant research funding.
Research involving vertebrate animals at Canadian universities is overseen by the Canadian Council on Animal Care. If Western were to lose its accreditation with this organization, she noted, it could jeopardize around $60 million in annual Tri-Council funding.
“Financially, this is crucial, and it surprises me that Western is not treating this with the seriousness it deserves.”
The power outages have also hindered researchers from independently accessing animal facilities, which are secured by electronic card-access systems.
MacDougall-Shackleton stated that researchers have had to frequently reach out to Western’s special constables for assistance in entering these facilities to bring in portable air conditioners and prevent animals from overheating.
“It sickens me to consider the risks we are taking.”