RALEIGH-- Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey and UNC Asheville Chancellor Nancy J. Cable reached an agreement that will address fire safety concerns and allow students to move into their dorms immediately.

"I want to thank Chancellor Cable for her diligence and patience in working through the process with our attorneys, and for her concern for the safety and well-being of students, faculty, and first responders,”  Causey said in a press release. "She and her staff were very cordial, and she kept a calm demeanor under a lot of stress."

"I take my statutory responsibility to make sure all state buildings, including university buildings, are safe seriously," Commissioner Causey said. "State law allows NCDOI to intervene only after the State Construction Office issues a Certificate of Occupancy. In this case, the Certificate of Occupancy was issued one day before the semester began. That required quick action by DOI’s Risk Management Division because of construction hazards and life-safety issues in the event of a fire."

The steps taken include  repositioning the valves on the water supply pipes, installing a sprinkler system in the attic of each dormitory  and a series of short tem measures to enhance fire protection until permanent changes are completed. That includes having fire department staff station at the dorms.

In the spring of 2018, the Asheville Fire Department alerted NCDOI of fire hazards in the construction of the residence halls. The NCDOI Risk Management Division proactively recommended ways to remedy the hazards. By law, NCDOI could not intervene until the State Construction Office issued its Certificate of Occupancy.

"It is my desire that the NCDOI and the State Construction Office work hand-in-hand in future construction endeavors to ensure the safe construction of our state buildings and that they stay on schedule,"  Causey said.