As renovations to the Huey P. Long Field House *continue, students report seeing people enter the construction zone at night.
Restoration efforts started in 2021, and as time progressed, videos of students entering the Field House circulated around social media.
Lorenzo Oliveira, a former LSU student currently studying at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, said he noticed people entering the Field House late at night.
He said he could see through the construction site from his friend’s second-story window in South Hall and noticed numerous people walking the scaffolding.
Oliveira observed that the people entering the Field House seemed nonchalant about their actions and did not take precautionary measures to be hidden. He believes that this may be due to a potential lack of police patrol at night.
“You couldn’t see where the people were from street level anyway, so [the people entering the Field House] were very relaxed and not seeming to care about their actions,” *he said.
Oliveira also said he has seen videos of people throwing bricks from the Field House’s original construction into the empty pool basin outside, as well as videos of an old fire hydrant being discharged that circulated around the LSU student community.
Oliveira believes that seeing people enter the construction site without getting caught could tempt more people to do the same.
“The second that one person goes into a building like Huey P. Long, they are going to tell a couple of friends,” Oliveira said. “It’s going to become a butterfly effect.”
He said that the allure of going to risky places attracts people to things like construction sites and ancient buildings that could crumble at any moment.
“I think people love adventure more than they are smart enough to rationalize illegally entering a building,” Oliveira said.
Old buildings are known to crumble under increased pressure from heavy weight, and Oliveira hopes this will not injure people who enter.
“There are a lot of rooms within Huey P. Long that seem pretty dangerous for people to walk around,” Oliveira stated. “Old elevator shafts and stairs are places where people can fall and cause harm to themselves and others.”
Political communication sophomore Zechariah Slade has also seen videos of people entering the Huey P. Long Field House. He said that the people’s actions looked more like exploration within the building rather than vandalism.
Slade believes that while a lot of students may be inclined to roam the Field House, the temptation for students who live in dorms on the west side of campus might be stronger.
“I personally lived in South Hall my freshman year,” Slade said. “The residents on the west side have roamed the construction area because it’s close to their dorm. The people on the east side of campus aren’t aware of the accessible entrances and the growing popularity of sneaking into it at night.”
Slade believes that the reason students roam the Field House is because they may seek the thrill of experiencing something they know is off-limits.
“Anytime you see something abandoned, it’s something that you can’t walk through because of rules and health codes,” Slade said. “Most students see that as an opportunity to bend the rules.”
Slade said he thinks that building appropriate fencing can help prevent unwanted entry, stating that he did not see any warnings around the construction site to warn students that Huey P. Long Field House was off limits.
“A piece of fence that any student can grab and move is defeating its purpose,” Slade said.
“Posting signs that state ‘Do Not Enter’ and ‘Entering Illegally Will Be Punished’ will be a deterrent because it shows that LSU does care about the safety of the students and the construction of Huey P. Long,” Slade said.
Executive director of facility and property oversight Tammy Millican said that Facility Services was unaware of students entering the Huey P. Long Field House. He suggested speaking with the LSU Police Department.
Additionally, University spokesperson Ernie Ballard said that LSUPD has not received any reports of trespassing or vandalism of the Huey P. Long Field House.
Ballard said that if anyone sees someone inside the construction site who should not be there or if any suspicious activity takes place, they should report to LSUPD.
Photos of inside the Huey P. Long Field House show the explorations of students.
