BATON ROUGE — Southern University canceled classes for the second time in one week as power outages continued to affect several buildings on campus.

University officials said in a statement on Tuesday that the outages are related to failed electrical equipment affecting proper voltage distribution across campus.

The sound of generators could be heard across campus Tuesday afternoon as multiple buildings remained without power. Student Marleigh Wright said the outages are cutting into instruction time.

"It's inconvenient. The Wi-Fi isn't working, so even if we wanted to catch up on work, we can't," Wright said.

Members of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Incorporated used the unexpected day off to hand out nonperishable food to classmates. Zylah Gipson, a member of the sorority, came up with the idea.

"Food was going bad in our refrigerators, so I said, 'Instead of us complaining about it, I feel like we can take initiative and help on our own,'" Gipson said.

For some students, the situation came as no surprise. Freshman Jarvis Sillmon said he had heard about this before.

"I expected this. I have a few upperclassmen friends that said this happens normally," Sillmon said.

Scotlandville Magnet High School, about a mile away, also closed early Tuesday after a power outage. It is unclear if that outage is related to the university's issues, though power has since been restored there.

An Entergy spokesperson said in a statement that the outages at Southern University are not connected to any issues with Entergy's grid. The statement went on to read, "Southern University owns and maintains the electrical distribution system that serves the interior of their campus, where these outages are occurring. Entergy is coordinating with Southern University officials to lend support and guidance as they work to address their outages."

University officials said crews are actively testing and evaluating the equipment to identify all failed components to determine the primary cause. Once that is determined, leaders will develop a comprehensive plan for repairs to be made and for the campus to return to normal operations.