Cause of fire may not be known for days
Posted: Tuesday, November 21, 2006
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) -- It could be several days before officials release the cause of the fire that killed a Nebraska Wesleyan University student, the Lancaster County Attorney's Office said Monday.
Evidence at the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity house was still being collected, said a news release from the office, and the work could continue for the next few days.
But based on the information he has received thus far, State Fire Marshal Dennis Hohbein said, it does not appear the fire was set intentionally. An arson-detection dog sent into the building did not detect any flammable liquids, Hohbein said Monday.
The fire claimed the life of 19-year-old Ryan Stewart of Ord, and three others remained Monday in a Lincoln hospital suffering from smoke inhalation. An autopsy revealed that Stewart died of smoke and soot inhalation.
The conditions of the three students improved over the weekend and Monday. David Spittler, 20, from Elkhorn, was upgraded to serious condition. Travis Mann, 22, of Beatrice was upgraded to fair condition, as was Aaron McGuire, 20, of Sioux Falls, S.D.
The fire broke out around 4 a.m. Friday in a second-story room at the fraternity house. Fire officials have said someone pulled a fire alarm; it's not clear how soon after the fire started the alarm was pulled. Some students have reported not hearing an alarm when they were awakened by other students warning them about the fire.
Firefighters reported seeing some students leap from the brick building's windows to escape the blaze.
Hohbein said it is common for investigations into the causes of fatal fires to last several days.
"We have to be really, really sure of our findings. Anytime you have loss of a life, it's obviously more than just putting together another piece of property," Hohbein said.
The Phi Kappa Tau house was built in 1928 and is on the National Historic Register.
Officials plan to move the Phi Kappa Tau members into a vacant section of the Alpha Gamma Delta sorority house on the campus until the fraternity house is habitable, a university spokeswoman said.
Nebraska Wesleyan is a Methodist Church-affiliated liberal arts college founded in 1887. There are 1,800 students enrolled there, according to the university's Web site.
Evidence at the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity house was still being collected, said a news release from the office, and the work could continue for the next few days.
But based on the information he has received thus far, State Fire Marshal Dennis Hohbein said, it does not appear the fire was set intentionally. An arson-detection dog sent into the building did not detect any flammable liquids, Hohbein said Monday.
The fire claimed the life of 19-year-old Ryan Stewart of Ord, and three others remained Monday in a Lincoln hospital suffering from smoke inhalation. An autopsy revealed that Stewart died of smoke and soot inhalation.
The conditions of the three students improved over the weekend and Monday. David Spittler, 20, from Elkhorn, was upgraded to serious condition. Travis Mann, 22, of Beatrice was upgraded to fair condition, as was Aaron McGuire, 20, of Sioux Falls, S.D.
The fire broke out around 4 a.m. Friday in a second-story room at the fraternity house. Fire officials have said someone pulled a fire alarm; it's not clear how soon after the fire started the alarm was pulled. Some students have reported not hearing an alarm when they were awakened by other students warning them about the fire.
Firefighters reported seeing some students leap from the brick building's windows to escape the blaze.
Hohbein said it is common for investigations into the causes of fatal fires to last several days.
"We have to be really, really sure of our findings. Anytime you have loss of a life, it's obviously more than just putting together another piece of property," Hohbein said.
The Phi Kappa Tau house was built in 1928 and is on the National Historic Register.
Officials plan to move the Phi Kappa Tau members into a vacant section of the Alpha Gamma Delta sorority house on the campus until the fraternity house is habitable, a university spokeswoman said.
Nebraska Wesleyan is a Methodist Church-affiliated liberal arts college founded in 1887. There are 1,800 students enrolled there, according to the university's Web site.
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