A four-day power failure at Western University in London, Ontario, has resulted in the loss of irreplaceable research samples, postponed experiments, and has raised concerns among biology students and faculty about the university’s ability to safeguard millions of dollars’ worth of scientific research.

Since Friday, the Biological & Geological Sciences Building, the Materials Sciences Addition, the Chemistry Building, and the Natural Sciences Centre have been relying on backup power due to an issue at a campus power substation.

Western University reported that power was reinstated to most buildings on Friday evening, but the four affected facilities are still on backup power while 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 concerns, including granting access to fulfill research needs.

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

“We’re going to become a laughing stock,” remarked Beth MacDougall-Shackleton, a professor of biology.

“My Canadian colleagues and even those from so-called ‘developing countries’ — they all have far more reliable power access than we do here.”

Beth MacDougall-Shackleton, a biology professor at Western, warns that the university risks becoming a laughing stock if power access continues to be unreliable. (Submitted by Beth MacDougall-Shackleton)

MacDougall-Shackleton emphasized that biology research relies on consistent conditions for living organisms and temperature-sensitive materials. Instead, growth chambers for insects and plants are overheating, research sample freezers are thawing due to inadequate backup power, and researchers have been unable to access animals needed for studies.

Additionally, the outages have compelled the department to replace thousands of dollars’ worth of reagents, enzymes, and other research supplies, according to her.

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

Graduate students have invested months or even years into breeding insects, growing plants, and cultivating bacterial strains, many of which may no longer be viable.

“It’s impossible to 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, highlights the loss of irreplaceable samples during the power outage. (Submitted by Matheus Sanita Lima)

Sanita Lima explained that the department has lost unique samples, including specimens from extinct species, collections dating back to the 1970s, and materials from long-term cohort studies that cannot be replicated.

For graduate students who are working under tight research deadlines, these losses can translate into additional months or even years of effort.

Students and faculty demand action

Sanita Lima and MacDougall-Shackleton mentioned that they have consistently voiced their concerns to Western’s administration during the current and previous outages, but they have been met with frustration regarding the responses.

“No one seems to acknowledge that it is a university’s duty to ensure a stable power supply,” MacDougall-Shackleton remarked.

During a meeting on Monday, graduate students, faculty, and staff agreed to reach out to their respective unions. They believe Western’s management of the ongoing outages might violate provisions in their collective agreements that require the university to supply the necessary infrastructure for teaching and research.

Furthermore, they are urging Western to commit to a series of improvements.

In the immediate future, they want the university to enhance communication during outages, providing quicker and clearer updates on restoration timelines.

Looking ahead, they are advocating for Western to invest in modernizing the campus electrical system and increasing maintenance staffing, particularly as the university continues to grow.

Reputation at stake and potential funding risks

MacDougall-Shackleton expressed that the recurrent outages could damage Western’s reputation with research partners, donors, and taxpayers who support scientific endeavors at the university.

She also cautioned that these issues could threaten 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 warned, approximately $60 million in annual Tri-Council funding could be at risk.

“It’s crucial from a financial standpoint, and I find it surprising that Western does not treat this with the seriousness it deserves.”

Additionally, the power outages have hindered researchers from independently accessing animal facilities, which are locked with electronic card-activated systems.

MacDougall-Shackleton noted that researchers have repeatedly had to contact Western’s special constables to gain entry so they can bring in portable air conditioning units to prevent overheating of the animals.

“It makes me feel ill to consider the risks we are taking.”