NYU spokesman John Beckman said residence hall staff at Britanny spoke to residents face-to-face about the fire. Beckman said there were about 75 to 100 students in attendance.

FDNY has confirmed that the fire that started in Brittany Residence Hall Saturday night was set purposefully by an NYU student who "appeared suicidal." The fire broke out on the 8th floor of the residence hall at about 9 p.m.

Authorities said the student started a small fire that was extinguished before members of the fire department arrived on the scene. Additionally, the student inflicted several lacerations to himself. The wounds were not life-threatening, however, and the student was taken to Bellevue Hospital for further examination. No other students were injured.

Students were evacuated from Brittany once the alarms were set off. Once allowed back into the building, however, students were not immediately allowed to go back to their rooms and were told to wait in the first floor Rhodes Room lounge. Students were only allowed onto the upper floors beginning at around 11 p.m.

According to NYU spokesman John Beckman, the fire appeared to have started on a pile of clothing. He said that the damage to the room was minimal, but for a variety of reasons, could not go into further detail about the fire or the student. He did acknowledge, however, that the fire appears not to have been an accident.

Beckman added: "The university is confident that there is no ongoing danger and there is no reason for ongoing concern on the part of residents."

More information to come.