As many of you may have heard, the Equine Reproduction Laboratory at Colorado State University was destroyed by fire last week. The following is excerpted from a letter on the CSU website from Professor Colin Clay, Head of the Department of Biomedical Sciences, in the Animal Reproduction and Biotechnology Laboratory at CSU.
“The Equine Reproduction Laboratory at Colorado State University suffered a devastating fire in the early morning hours of July 26. Thankfully, there were no injuries to people or horses. Quick action from the Poudre Valley Fire Authority, the Fort Collins Police Department, and the CSU Police Department contained the fire to a single structure. At this time, there is an active investigation into the cause of the fire, and we are in the process of inventorying biological materials and relocating laboratory personnel to temporary workspaces. The destruction at the laboratory is extensive, and we expect that much if not all of the high-tech equipment is a complete loss. The impact of the fire on this flagship program is profound, but the response from the ERL community is even more impressive.”
I received my Masters Degree from CSU and in June of 1980 Colin Clay and I started graduate school together on the same day at the Equine Reproduction Laboratory. The Equine Reproduction Laboratory at CSU is responsible for countless advances in our understanding of equine reproduction, development of breakthrough assisted reproductive techniques and education of students, veterinarians and horse breeders over the last 40 years. My years as a student at the ERL have had a profound impact on my life and the development of Select Breeders Service and it is tragic to see this great program crippled by such a devastating fire.
CSU has established a fund to help rebuild the Equine Reproduction Laboratory and I urge friends, colleagues and clients to consider supporting the rebuilding of the CSU Equine Reproduction Laboratory with a donation to this fund. Information can be found by clicking on the following link: https://advancing.colostate.edu/ERLREBUILD
Thank you very much for your consideration.
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