Science center at Villanova U. evacuated because of chemical leak RADNOR, Pa., Feb. 13 (UPI) -- A building at Villanova University in the Philadelphia suburbs was evacuated because of a leak in a chemistry lab. At least one student was taken to a hospital Tuesday afternoon, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. A university staff member told the newspaper she and other freshmen were synthesizing esters, organic compounds, in a lab on the third floor of the Mendel Science Center when she became ill. The hospitalized student had a nose bleed. Other students reported feeling lightheaded and dizzy. A decontamination tent was set up outside the science center. Dan Kazmierski, a senior majoring in biology, was in the building when the evacuation was announced. He said instructors are normally very cautious about working with chemicals, telling students to perform operations under a protective hood while wearing gloves and goggles. Villanova, in the Main Line suburb of Radnor, is the oldest Catholic university in Pennsylvania.