Trinity College

Simulated Fire Attracts a Large Crowd on Austin Arts Center Quad

HARTFORD, Conn – Each year an average of 15 college students lose their lives as the result of fires in residence hall rooms, fires that could have been avoided.

About 300 Trinity students got a firsthand look Thursday at how quickly a residence hall room without a sprinkler can become engulfed in flames when students are reckless with candles, cigarettes, Christmas lights or other potentially hazardous agents. The event was co-sponsored by the Hartford Fire Department and Trinity’s Common Hour program to highlight National Campus Fire Safety Month.

Two simulated rooms, 8-feet by 8-feet, were built on the mini-quadrangle in front of the Austin Arts Center directly across from Mather Hall. The rooms were furnished as a typical room would be laid out – with a bed, bureau, chair, posters, a trash can and other items that a student would be likely to have in his or her room.

Fire officials, using an accelerant in a garbage pail, first set a fire in the room without a sprinkler system. Within 43 seconds, the smoke detector went off. By the time a minute had elapsed, flames had reached the ceiling and a temperature of about 310 degrees.

At the two-minute mark, the bed was on fire and 30 seconds later, the room was fully engulfed in flames. Black smoke poured out of the room and even the grass in front of the room was scorched. The fire was then extinguished by several city firefighters who were at the scene. They were accompanied by two fire trucks, as well as Lt. Roger Martin and Chief Edward Cacareis of the Hartford Fire Marshall’s Office.

“I can’t imagine if you saw that, that you would forget it,” said Associate Dean of Students Ann Reuman, one of many College officials on hand to witness the blaze.

Before

After

Trinity students agreed. “I was definitely impressed,” said Luc Rioual ’10. “I didn’t think it would go that quick.”

The residence hall room with a sprinkler system was also set on fire, but it prompted a far different result. Within 10 seconds, the smoke detector sounded and within 45 seconds, the sprinkler was activated. There was minimal damage to the room.

All of the rooms in on-campus residence halls have sprinkler systems, according to Sally Katz, director of facilities.

At the end of the demonstration, Cacareis told the students, “I hope that you’ll take back what you’ve seen to friends and families to make sure that they have smoke detectors.”

National Campus Fire Safety Month was begun in 2005 when a group of parents who had lost children in campus fires sent a letter to the governors of all 50 states asking them to sign a proclamation designating September as Campus Fire Safety Month. Twelve governors responded affirmatively, but by 2008 the number had grown to 32.

For more information, please visit: www.campusfiresafetymonth.org.