Binghamton University’s Office of Residential Life has enforced a ban on No Boundaries brand 5-Light Multicolored Floor Lamps this week in response to two hazardous incidents on the SUNY Fredonia campus.

The lamp, which can be purchased at retail stores such as Wal-Mart for about $20, has a tendency to overheat. On Jan. 20, one such lamp was discovered in a Fredonia dorm room with one-third of the plastic shade completely melted off, said Kevin Frevfe, a reporter from Fredonia’s campus newspaper. The melted plastic released toxic fumes into the dormitory and damaged personal property near the lamp.

University officials were most alarmed that the accident occurred despite the fact that it was being operated in full compliance with the manufacturer’s instructions. The proper bulb was in use, and it was not in direct contact with any foreign objects.

Grace Hoefner, the senior assistant director of Residential Life, sent a campus-wide e-mail on Monday advising students to discontinue using the lamps and to remove them from campus as soon as possible. The message also urged off-campus students to stop using the lamp.

Terry Webb, the director of Residential Life, suggests that students also avoid any lamps similar to the No Boundaries model until further notice. ‘The University has no desire to over-regulate students, but right now there is a clear and present danger of these causing a fire,’ Webb said.

Many Binghamton students own the lamp, Webb added, as ResLife has received a flood of e-mails regarding what to do with the lamps in question.

Freshman Vanessa Tsong expressed similar concerns when she received Hoefner’s e-mail. ‘I can’t believe I had this lamp in my dorm that was so dangerous,’ Tsong said.

ResLife was unable to say whether any disciplinary policy would be enacted for those who kept the lamp.

A manager at Bed Bath and Beyond on the Vestal Parkway, which carries the No Boundaries lamp, said students could return any lamps purchased at the store at any time.