On Aug. 15, several residence halls across USC's campus experienced power outages during move-in for the Fall 2026 semester.
According to a statement from the university, these outages occurred as a result of a subcontractor construction crew severing a power line. Residence halls affected include Capstone, Columbia Hall, Women's Quad, Patterson, South Tower, Preston, Thornwell, Maxcy, all residence halls on the Horseshoe and the Honors Residence Hall.
Each of the affected residence halls used generators to alleviate the impact on students and their families. Despite these halls having generators in place, each was limited to one working elevator during move-in, the university said.
"USC’s move-in team mobilized quickly to communicate the outage to those already on campus while also making sure students using the stairs had help carrying their belongings," said Collyn Taylor, USC's director of news and communications.
According to Taylor, power was restored to these residence halls as quickly as possible following the outages and move-in continued without further incident.
"We appreciate the students and families for handling the unforeseen circumstances with a positive attitude and supporting our efforts to handle the situation," Taylor said. "Feedback from students, families and volunteers after move-in has been overwhelmingly positive and we’re excited for a fantastic Fall 2026 semester.”