The elevator ride up to the third floor of Larch Hall seemed the same, but when the doors opened residents saw new carpet and freshly painted white walls. Painted designs on the elevator doors no longer distinguished their floor from the rest.

As many Wolf House residents found their way to their rooms, a reminder of what now sets them apart from other Larch Hall floors was apparent. The once-white nametags posted on room doors survived, although soot-stained and smeared.

Nearly a month ago, a fire started by a halogen lamp in one of the floor’s rooms resulted in the evacuation of 63 residents. There were no injuries, but residents were left devastated and homeless.

The fire was contained to one room, but the entire third floor sustained smoke and heat damage. Floors four through eight also sustained light damage, but residents were allowed to return to their rooms later that week.

On Saturday the men of Wolf House saw their rooms for the first time since the fire.

Along with new carpet, Wolf House residents also received a new resident assistant after the fire.

Adam Warren, resident assistant of Wolf House, said his residents were allowed to move in a day earlier than other students living in the residence halls. He said most residents on the floor took advantage of the early move-in date.

But not all residents of Wolf House will be returning.

Brad Knapp, hall director of Larch Hall, said some residents opted to make their temporary-housing situation a permanent-housing situation.

“I think the majority of them will be coming back, but some did decide to stay off campus,” Knapp said.

For those who did return, Knapp said moving back in went smoothly.

“The university provided storage for the residents during the break in a trailer that was located outside,” Knapp said. “The university put their furniture back in their rooms so they didn’t have to lug everything back up to the third floor.”

Brian Rice, Wolf House resident and a junior in marketing, said the university did a good job relocating them after the fire, but more cleaning needs to be done.

“There’s stuff in the wrong rooms and things ended up missing,” Rice said. “Some of the rooms still have soot.”

Rice said missing items include a TV and a ping-pong table from the den.

Nate Jacobi, Wolf House resident and a freshman in pre-engineering, said a lot of confusion resulted from moving out.

“We were about as prepared as [the university] was,” Rice said.

Although further cleanup needs to be done, Rice and Jacobi praised the university for getting them back into their rooms before Christmas break.

Warren said the extra workload required for his residents to move back was lower in comparison to other residents moving into the dorms after break.

“[The university] did a good job of getting most of everything back to normal,” Warren said.

In addition, Wolf House residents received fruit baskets in their rooms as a welcome-back gift from the university.

Knapp, who returned to Larch Sunday night, said he has yet to see the room that contained the fire. He said test furniture being used on a floor in the Towers Residence Association has been installed in the room.