NYU students mourned the loss of a fellow student as the first day of classes started on Jan. 27. NYU Vice Chancellor Linda Mills notified the NYU community of his passing this morning via email.

CAS freshman Drew Weber, who lives in Third Avenue North residence hall, said no one knew what was going on as they evacuated the building around 3 a.m. Many students headed to nearby residence halls after evacuating.

“I didn’t hear anything official, including the fact that he had died, until the morning,” Weber said.

CAS freshman Alexa Pearce, who also lives in Third North, said she did not know the student but the incident has been difficult to process.

“Our hearts have been in our stomachs ever since we found out,” Pearce said. “Even though he lived in our dorm, it’s hard to grasp that this event happened so close to us because NYU is such a large community, and events like this tend to feel distant.”

Pearce said counselors have been made available in the basement of Third North since this morning.

Staff members in businesses underneath Third North, such as Everything Bagel and Just Sweet, said they were not notified about the student’s death, but they had noticed fewer students were coming in during the day.

Pearce said that although she has not gone to the counselors at Third North, she was previously aware of the wellness hotline.

“It’s a number that even my parents had memorized after Welcome Week,” Pearce said. “I think it is great that NYU has reacted so quickly in getting counselors specifically to Third North residents.”

Additional reporting by Scott Mullen. Ann Schmidt is a news editor. Email them at [email protected].