Center for Campus Fire Safety

Fatal fire in MIT-owned high-rise building

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 09 Dec 2006 10:49:00 +0000

A fire in a transformer vault in the basement of a high-rise office building owned by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology killed one utility worker. The fire filled both stairwells with smoke, forcing a number of the occupants to escape from the building by breaking a window and climbing onto the roof of an adjacent parking garage.

Read more in the Saturday, 12/9/06 edition of the Boston Globe

View news video of workers' accounts about escaping from the fire

2 Fatal Blazes Renew Focus on Fraternities’ Lack of Sprinklers

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 09 Dec 2006 10:45:00 +0000

NOTE: This article appeared in the 12/8/06 edition of the New York Times.

At the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity house at Nebraska Wesleyan University, a fire killed one student and critically injured three others on Nov. 17.

By LIBBY SANDER

Published: December 8, 2006

CHICAGO, Dec. 7 — With fatal fraternity house fires in Nebraska and Missouri last month fresh on their minds, fire officials in a handful of college communities have intensified their push for city ordinances requiring fraternity and sorority houses to install sprinkler systems.

Fraternity fire at the University of Missouri – St. Louis claims one student

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 09 Dec 2006 10:41:00 +0000

Fire death is the third in less than two weeks at campuses across the nation

11/29/06
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Ed Comeau, Director
Center for Campus Fire Safety
www.campusfire.org
413-323-6002 (tel)
413-896-5718 (cell)

BELCHERTOWN, Mass., November 29, 2006— Brian Schlittler , 25, a senior, was killed in an early morning fire today at the University of Missouri - St. Louis, Missouri. The fire was reported at 3:45 in the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity.

This fire death comes less than two weeks after two other campus fire deaths across the nation. On November 16, a student was killed in a fraternity fire at Nebraska Wesleyan University in Lincoln, Nebraska, and on the same day a student from the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, succumbed to injuries he received in an off-campus fire on November 4.

Nationwide, 92 people have been killed in campus-related fires since January 2000, as identified by the Center for Campus Fire Safety, a non-profit organization that compiles information on these fires. Almost 80 percent of the fire fatalities have occurred in off-campus occupancies such as rented houses and apartments. Common factors in a number of these fires include:

• Lack of automatic fire sprinklers
• Disabled smoke alarms
• Careless disposal of smoking materials
• Alcohol consumption

“It is vital that students learn the steps they can take to protect themselves, their friends and roommates from fire,” said Ed Comeau, director of the Center. Some of these include:

• Choose fire-safe housing, either on- or off-campus, that includes automatic fire sprinklers
• Make sure there are interconnected smoke alarms on every level and ensure that they are working at all times. Always evacuate whenever the alarm is activated.
• Know two ways out, no matter where you are – a residence hall, your house or apartment, a restaurant or a movie theater.
• If a smoke alarm is being activated needlessly, such as by cooking or steam from a shower, relocate the smoke alarm instead of disabling it.
• Properly dispose of smoking material by using ashtrays.
• After parties, check the cushions on couches and chairs to make sure there aren’t any lit cigarettes smoldering.
• Properly use extension cords and electrical appliances.

“Learning these fire safety behaviors will help people during their college years and throughout their lives,” said Comeau. “These are ‘life skills’ that might become ‘life-saving skills’ someday.”

More information on campus fire safety can be found at the Center’s Web site at www.campusfire.org, including a Campus Fire Safety Fact Sheet, compilation of all of the fatal fires in student housing identified by the Center, a list of questions that parents and students can ask when looking at student housing and video clips of training programs the Center has been involved with.

The Center for Campus Fire Safety, a leader in fire safety, is a non-profit organization that is devoted to reducing fires at campuses across the nation through education and advocacy.

###

Off-campus fire claims the life of University of Pittsburgh student

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 13:31:00 +0000

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Ed Comeau, Director

Center for Campus Fire Safety

www.campusfire.org

413-323-6002 (tel)

413-896-5718 (cell)

ecomeau@campusfire.org

Student was critically injured in fire on November 4

BELCHERTOWN, Mass., November 21, 2006— A student from the University of Pittsburgh, Richard Noble, died on Friday from injuries he suffered in an off-campus fire on November 4 according to a university official.

Nationwide, 91 people have been killed in campus-related fires since January 2000, as identified by the Center for Campus Fire Safety, a non-profit organization that compiles information on these fires. Almost 80 percent of the fire fatalities have occurred in off-campus occupancies such as rented houses and apartments. Common factors in a number of these fires include:

Lack of automatic fire sprinklers
Disabled smoke alarms
Careless disposal of smoking materials
Alcohol consumption

“It is vital that students learn the steps they can take to protect themselves, their friends and roommates from fire,” said Ed Comeau, director of the Center. Some of these include:

· Choose fire-safe housing, either on- or off-campus, that includes automatic fire sprinklers

· Make sure there are interconnected smoke alarms on every level and ensure that they are working at all times. Always evacuate whenever the alarm is activated.

· Know two ways out, no matter where you are – a residence hall, your house or apartment, a restaurant or a movie theater.

· If a smoke alarm is being activated needlessly, such as by cooking or steam from a shower, relocate the smoke alarm instead of disabling it.

· Properly dispose of smoking material by using ashtrays.

· After parties, check the cushions on couches and chairs to make sure there aren’t any lit cigarettes smoldering.

· Properly use extension cords and electrical appliances.

The Center for Campus Fire Safety, a leader in fire safety, is a non-profit organization that is devoted to reducing fires at campuses across the nation through education and advocacy.

Fraternity fire claims the life of 19-year-old student at Nebraska Wesleyan University

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 17 Nov 2006 18:54:00 +0000

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Ed Comeau, Director

Center for Campus Fire Safety

www.campusfire.org

413-323-6002 (tel)

413-896-5718 (cell)

ecomeau@campusfire.org

Fraternity fire claims the life of 19-year-old student at Nebraska Wesleyan University

Three additional students are in critical condition

BELCHERTOWN, Mass., November 17, 2006— A 19-year-old male died in an early-morning fire in the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity and three others were critically injured, according to university spokesperson Sara Olson. All are students at Nebraska Wesleyan University in Lincoln, Nebraska. There were 39 people in the building at the time of the fire, reported Olson.

Nationwide, 90 people have been killed in campus-related fires since January 2000, as identified by the Center for Campus Fire Safety, a non-profit organization that compiles information on these fires. Almost 80 percent of the fire fatalities have occurred in off-campus occupancies such as rented houses and apartments. Common factors in a number of these fires include:

Lack of automatic fire sprinklers
Disabled smoke alarms
Careless disposal of smoking materials
Alcohol consumption

“It is vital that students learn the steps they can take to protect themselves, their friends and roommates from fire,” said Ed Comeau, director of the Center. Some of these include:

· Choose fire-safe housing, either on- or off-campus, that includes automatic fire sprinklers

· Make sure there are interconnected smoke alarms on every level and ensure that they are working at all times. Always evacuate whenever the alarm is activated.

· Know two ways out, no matter where you are – a residence hall, your house or apartment, a restaurant or a movie theater.

· If a smoke alarm is being activated needlessly, such as by cooking or steam from a shower, relocate the smoke alarm instead of disabling it.

· Properly dispose of smoking material by using ashtrays.

· After parties, check the cushions on couches and chairs to make sure there aren’t any lit cigarettes smoldering.

· Properly use extension cords and electrical appliances.

The Center for Campus Fire Safety, a leader in fire safety, is a non-profit organization that is devoted to reducing fires at campuses across the nation through education and advocacy.

###

P.O. Box 1429 Belchertown, MA 01007 1-413-323-6002 (tel) 1-413-460-0092 (fax) info@campusfire.org

Conference highlights need for fire safety on campuses

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 09:20:00 +0000

Conference highlights need for fire safety on campuses

By Jamie Schuman : The Herald-Sun
jschuman@heraldsun.com
Nov 7, 2006 : 11:30 pm ET

CHAPEL HILL -- The fraternity house fire that killed five UNC students a decade ago had one benefit, Chapel Hill Fire Chief Dan Jones explained at a conference on campus fire safety Monday.

It caused UNC, and colleges nationwide, to pay more attention to fire safety.

"We had our teachable moment the hard way," Jones told about 200 college administrators and safety officials in town for Campus Fire Forum 8.

The annual conference, which officials started in the wake of the UNC fire, is a way for campuses to share strategies to avoid tragedies. This is the first year the conference is in Chapel Hill, and it is here because of the anniversary of the fraternity fire.

Those attending the conference, which ends Thursday, are trading tips about best practices and how to promote the importance of fire safety to college administrators.

They also are looking at advancements in sprinkler and alarm technology. On Monday, they saw demonstrations of two mock student rooms that had been set on fire. One of the rooms had a sprinkler system, and the blaze there was extinguished within 30 seconds.

UNC's Phi Gamma Delta fraternity house, on Cameron Avenue, did not have a sprinkler system when the deadly blaze destroyed it and killed five students, on May 12, 1996. That day was commencement at Carolina and Mother's Day, and the confluence of events put the tragedy in the national spotlight.

UNC and Chapel Hill have been leaders in promoting campus fire safety since that day, Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy said at the conference. All of Carolina's Greek houses now have sprinkler systems, which spray water and sound alarms. Still, some of its dorms do not.

And Jones and others worry that students do not remember the lessons of the Phi Gam tragedy, in part because the campus population is transient.

"It means little or nothing to the students today," Jones said. "We have to redouble constantly."

Nationwide, there have been 89 campus-related fire deaths since January 2000, according to the Center for Campus Fire Safety, which sponsored the conference. Alcohol consumption and lack of sprinklers were factors in many of those cases.

Denis Onieal, superintendent of the National Fire Academy and keynote speaker at the conference, said it is hard to get the message about fire safety across to administrators and students. That message competes with thousands of other messages, he said.

Onieal urged people to look at the strategies Mothers Against Drunk Driving uses. That group has had success, he said, because it partners with law enforcement officials and puts its campaign in an emotional and human framework.

Fire at Texas Tech-sprinkler save

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 02 Nov 2006 09:41:00 +0000

A fire in a trash chute in a residence hall was controlled by activation of the sprinkler system. More information here.

Close calls in Tempe, Arizona

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 17 Oct 2006 09:41:00 +0000

I heard from the Tempe Fire Department (home of Arizona State University) that they had two very close calls.

In one fire, two students were severely burned in a fire started in a couch on balcony by smoking materials. Fire was detected, they thought they extinguished it and then two of the residents left. Fire broke out in the night and extended up the exterior. Two victims spent ten days in a burn unit with 2nd degree burns.

Second fire was in a couch on a porch at a house. Victims had to jump to escape the fire.

Alcohol was a factor in both fires.

No sprinkler systems in either fire. Smoke detectors alerted the occupants in the second fire. Smoke detectors were present in the first fire, but it is unknown if they played a role.

Fire Extinguisher Safety

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 17 Oct 2006 09:33:00 +0000

Deputy Chief Paul Martin from the New York Fire Marshal's office and the Center for Campus Fire Safety was featured on the CBS Early Show with a demonstration of fire extinguishers.

Inside Edition story on campus fire safety

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 06 Oct 2006 20:18:00 +0000

Inside Edition did a story on campus fire safety. You can find the story online through the Center for Campus Fire Safety's Video on Demand page at http://campusfire.org/resources/video.html

NBC Nightly News and Campus Fire Safety

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 29 Sep 2006 17:41:00 +0000

NBC Nightly News did a story on campus fire safety. You can read the reporter's, Lea Thompson, blog on it at

http://dailynightly.msnbc.com/2006/09/how_to_avoid_of.html#below-fold

The video clip is posted at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOibyNiruaA

U.S. House of Representatives passes resolution recognizing September as Campus Fire Safety Month

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 28 Sep 2006 12:50:00 +0000

BELCHERTOWN, Mass., Sept. 27, 2006 — The U.S. House of Representatives has passed House Resolution 295, which recognizes September as national Campus Fire Safety Month. This legislation was introduced on behalf of the Center for Campus Fire Safety by Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones (OH) and Congressman Curt Weldon (PA) in order to raise the national awareness of the importance of fire safety on our campuses. In addition to H. Res 295, 30 states have issued proclamations designating September as Campus Fire Safety Month and a number of schools are holding fire safety events on campus.

Consumer Reports blog on campus fire safety

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 27 Sep 2006 12:45:00 +0000

Consumer Reports has started a new blog with an article on campus fire safety that is featured on their home page.

Ed Comeau: Campus fire fighter

For Ed Comeau, the die was cast when he went looking for cheap student housing. He found the local fire house. Rent was free -- as long as he and seven other housemates served on the volunteer fire department.

That was in the early 1980s at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. Ever since, Comeau has been hooked on fire safety and campus-fire safety in particular. Today, Comeau -- a civil engineer turned fire investigator -- heads the Center for Campus Fire Safety. He founded the Massachusetts-based group three years ago to track and, more importantly, reduce the number of fires on campuses around the country.

Click here to read the full blog!

Campus Fire Safety in NFPA Journal

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 01:57:00 +0000

Wayne Moore wrote an excellent article about fire alarm systems on campuses in the September/October issue of NFPA Journal.

Fire safety at University of Kentucky

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 16:03:00 +0000

This is a photograph from the University of Kentucky where they are doing programs all month long.

You can read the article about it, or contact Garry Beach, UK fire marshal, for more information on his program!

Have an Exit Strategy

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 15:05:00 +0000

This is an interesting article about a new public awareness campaign taking place in Texas to teach people about looking for two ways out. Click on the headline below for the full story.

Knowing Where The Exits Are

"The University of Texas just announced Tuesday a new campaign to make students aware of fire safety. It comes on the heels of an investigation by the state fire marshal that uncovered some dangerous findings."

Firehouse Magazine Article on Campus Fire Safety

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 19 Sep 2006 17:31:00 +0000

The September issue of Firehouse Magazine has an article by Hal Bruno about campus fire safety. Read the article online! Reprinted with permission from Firehouse Magazine, Copyright September 2006. It is unlawful to reprint or copy this material without permission.

Google Groups for Campus Fire Safety

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 19 Sep 2006 14:10:00 +0000

I have set up a Google Groups that people can subscribe to. Right now it is being used to send out the Tip-A-Day. In the future it will be used to send out timely information about various events, activities, breaking news, etc.

Right-to-Know legislation in New Jersey

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 19 Sep 2006 13:32:00 +0000

I just learned about legislation that had been introduced in New Jersey this summer. A 1421 "Requires New Jersey institutions of higher education to disseminate fire safety information about their facilities to students, parents or guardians, and employees." It passed the Assembly 79-0 and now moves to the Senate where, according to one staffer, the prospects are good.

US House Resolution Support

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 19 Sep 2006 13:13:00 +0000

The House Resolution for Campus Fire Safety Month, H Res 295, is being considered by the committee for recommendation to the full House right now. It got a "jump start" with an additional endorsement from the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF). This is in addition to the support from the Congressional Fire Services Institute, the International Association of Fire Chiefs, the International Code Council, the International Fire Marshals Association, the National Association of State Fire Marshals, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association, National Fire Protection Association, National Fire Sprinkler Association, Society of Fire Protection Engineers and Underwriters Laboratories.

Campus Fire Safety Month

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 19 Sep 2006 01:07:00 +0000

We now have 29 states, covering 60% of the population in the U.S., that have issued proclamations designating September as Campus Fire Safety Month. You can view the states at the Center's website at www.campusfire.org.

Students with Disabilities

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 18 Sep 2006 19:58:00 +0000

One of the issues that comes up each year at Campus Fire Forums is that of how to protect students with disabiliites from fire. The solutions that are mentioned at the Town Meeting each time vary dramatically...what are various schools doing?

Campus fire safety events

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 16 Sep 2006 11:17:00 +0000

A number of schools are doing events for campus fire safety month (you can see some of them listed on the Center's Events Calendar.

What are other schools doing?

Princeton Review Questions

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 16 Sep 2006 09:40:00 +0000

What are people's opinions on the Princeton Review fire safety questions? It is time to start looking at the new ones that will be sent out soon and we would like thoughts on them.