Fire destroys frat house
ASHLEY JACOBS/Herald photo
JEFF SCHORFHEIDE/Herald photo
CHARLIE GORICHANAZ/Herald photo
PEDRO OLIVEIRA JR./Herald photo
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by Tom Schalmo
Tuesday, May 13, 2008 03:01
A raging fire at a Langdon Street fraternity house left three firefighters with minor injuries and the house destroyed Monday night, though no residents were hurt.
The fire reportedly caught near the base of the Sigma Phi Epsilon house on 237 Langdon St. around 11:30 p.m. and eventually engulfed much of the third floor.
The Madison Fire Department said in a statement Tuesday three firefighters suffered minor injuries, including burns, dehydration and muscle strain. Two were transported to the University of Wisconsin Hospital and the other was taken to Meriter Hospital.
MFD spokesperson Bernadette Galvez said the house was destroyed, but there appeared to be no damage to surrounding buildings. Only the two adjacent buildings were evacuated.
Authorities would not disclose a cause but said the 25 residents made it out of the house safely.
According to a SigEp member, a cigarette in a dumpster caused the fire. Another SigEp member confirmed the fire started at the ground level and then erupted up to upper floors.
A police officer who saw the fire at the back of the house while on patrol notified MFD of the blaze at 11:41 p.m.
Neighbors gathered outside to try to figure out what was going on, and a Madison Metro bus arrived on the scene to hold displaced fraternity members.
According to a MFD statement, the fire was extinguished at 2:33 a.m. Due to threat of a collapse, firefighters inside were evacuated as the fire spread throughout the building.
Ryan Sugden, vice president of the Sigma Phi Epsilon alumni board, said there were 25 people in the house at the time the fire started, and they are all safe. Most of the possessions of the members are gone, he added.
UW has given SigEp members $500 crisis loans to take care of immediate needs.
Sugden called the support of the Offices of the Dean of Students “incredible,” and added half of the frat members had finals Tuesday and have contacted their professors.
Ald. Eli Judge, District 8, said places to sleep have been found for all the fraternity members.
Galvez said the Madison water utility provided extra pressure to aid in the fire fighting, but no additional resources are being brought in. Fourteen rigs and 48 personnel, as well as the American Red Cross, were at the scene, she added.
The intersection of State and Gilman streets was flooded as a result of firefighters’ efforts to stop the blaze.
The same house burned in 1999 as well, causing $500,000 in damage. MFD estimated $750,000 in damages in Tuesday’s fire.
— Pedro Oliveira Jr., Kevin Bargnes and Carl Jaeger contributed to this report.
Feedback
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 3:22am):
Good bye SigEp so many of the greatest memories of my life have burned to the ground
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 3:56am):
Its good to hear that everyone is ok and safe!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 4:56am):
Good Luck Guys!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 5:59am):
HAHAHAHA MY HOUSE IS BURNING DOWN!!!!!!!!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 6:07am):
I can't believe it... sorry to all the sig ep men. Things can be replaced...thank god no one was hurt.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 7:53am):
Kind of puts that whole hazing / not hazing nonsense in perspective, eh?
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:13am):
So many great memories in the house...
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:19am):
7:53 I wouldn't say it puts it in perspective, hazing is hazing--although this does take them off the burner, probably for good.
Regardless, some good friends of mine are in SigEp and are either living in now or planning to do so next year. I wish them all the best of luck.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:24am):
I'll bet they started the fire during some hazing related activities. So much for high iq frat boys after they burn down there house
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:37am):
A member's girlfriend who got tired of being pushed down the stairs probably did this
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:49am):
"It's one of those flaming bags again."
"Don't put it out with your boots, Ted."
"Don't tell me my business, Devil Woman. Call the fire department, this one's outta control."
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:53am):
Burning your house down with pledges inside? Now that's what I call frat hazing...
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:59am):
what the hell does a fire have to do with hazing?
glad to hear no one was injured
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 10:52am):
KARMA IS A BITCH
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 10:58am):
What a shame- at least no one was seriously hurt- such a beautiful historic house
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 10:59am):
That's sad... kinda ironic how it happened to be the same house that was accused of hazing just a week ago. Congrats to the dumbass who didn't put his cigarette out b4 throwing it in the trash.
Zach Heise (May 13, 2008 @ 11:10am):
What a terrible shame. I remember when I moved to Madison I pledged SigEp for a couple weeks. The frat scene wasn't my thing, but I remembered hearing about that other fire in 1999...from what I recall, the professor who used to live there had done the entire attic with like a secret room filled with carvings, paintings and architecture from Asia, and that was all destroyed in the '99 fire.
That house just seems to have bad luck! Condolences, guys!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 11:21am):
Best wishes to all Sig Ep members. I'm just glad to hear that everyone made it out safely.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 11:39am):
cover up?
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 12:14pm):
Our prayers are with you Sig Eps!
Jeff Hertz (May 13, 2008 @ 12:23pm):
How does this have anything to do with hazing? It's unfortunate that people who don't care about or understand the Greek system will use this as a reason to further stereotype/pre-judge all Greeks.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 12:29pm):
to whoever is joking around that sig ep deserved this or that karma is a bitch, you are ignorant fools, shame on you, people lost thousands of dollars worth of material, thank god nobody was hurt
also, shame on this journalist for writing that a cigarette caused the fire, the cause of the fire is still unknown, and as a journalism major myself, taking the info from the unknowledgeable member of sig ep and printing it in this story as a fact is horribly misleading and really embarrassing for the badger herald
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 12:31pm):
good luck Sig Eps... you guys will pull through!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 12:33pm):
SigEp is having the best week ever!
good thing no one got hurt
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 12:49pm):
THE HOUSE OF HAZE WENT DOWN IN A BLAZE
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 1:36pm):
My Thoughts And Prayers Go Out To Sig Ep.. Keep Your Heads Up.. You're A Great Frat And You WILL Bounce Back!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 1:46pm):
well now there is no incriminating evidence of hazing...
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 1:58pm):
My condolences to the frat. To the disrespectful douchebags, shut the fuck up. In case you forgot you are all Badgers. To joke or wish such a thing on anyone is just pathetic.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 2:11pm):
Don't be assholes about it. Those poor guys, could you imagine if your house/apartment burned down in the midst of finals week and all your stuff was gone?
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 2:28pm):
How can anyone think its funny to throw jokes on this? A lot of people lost everything they owned a week before graduation... right in the middle of finals. Try not to be so heartless, even if for some reason you disagree with the Greek lifestyle.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 2:57pm):
For all you people talking about karma, or saying deuche-esque things. Piss off! They didn't deserve to lose their house! I'm really sorry to hear this stuff happened guys... The greek system has got to stick togeather. Best luck!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 3:01pm):
i lost my cargo shorts, my abercombie tees, all my visors, my lube, my virginia slims, and my dignity.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 3:14pm):
Webster just updated its dictionaries.
Karma (see also: The Sigma Phi Epsilon House Fire of 2008)
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 3:21pm):
well now they can get a big-screen tv...with two remotes
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 3:23pm):
Lets focus on the fact that everyone is safe, and not pass blame/ make jokes about how the fire started. This could have been any house/ apartment building in this city and just because it is a fraternity does not mean the fire wasn't started by a legitimate reason.
Sig Ep- blessings your way, sorry to hear about your loss. We are so lucky that every one is alive.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 3:26pm):
It's appalling how some of you are reacting. These boys just lost everything, and you call them dumb and say they deserved it?
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 3:55pm):
"Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:24am):
I'll bet they started the fire during some hazing related activities. So much for high iq frat boys after they burn down there house"
It should be "their" house. Also, you have no heart, along with 9:37, 9:53, 9:52, and 10:59. If hell exists you will all get to hang out "there" for eternity.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 3:57pm):
"The roof the roof is on fire, we don't need no water let the mother fucka burn, the roof the roof is on fire"
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 4:03pm):
The whole cigarette thing was one person's opinion of how it could have started. to say its the reason is definitely to jump the gun. the badger herald doesn't seem to take much pride in accurate reporting.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 4:07pm):
My words of advice: Check out your house and make sure it is safe. I live in a house not far from there. THREE MONTHS AGO I told the management about the problem at our house: The fire alarm was silenced due to a false alarm. It finally got fixed last Thursday. That's right... they let us live like that for THREE MONTHS! The system was totally disabled for the whole time. I guess our safety wasn't very high of a priority for them. Ten people live here. Thats a lot of funerals.
CHECK OUT YOUR HOUSE. MAKE SURE YOUR FIRE ALARM SYSTEM IS FUNCTIONING CORRECTLY. DO IT TODAY. Had the police officer not have caught the blaze early, it might have been really, really ugly. Like it would have been had this happened at my house. If your landlord even starts to give you sh*t, call the building inspector.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 4:17pm):
how do you burn the same house down twice?
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 4:18pm):
As a member of sigep I would like to thank the greek community and the university for being so supportive.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 4:36pm):
9:24: It's "their", not "there". Ironic that you questioned "their" IQ.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 4:36pm):
The house was ugly anyways. This is a ritualistic hazing event. It only happens every 9 years, in 1999 and again in 2008, the next house burning will be in 2017.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 4:42pm):
We love you Sig Ep!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 5:40pm):
my heart goes out to all of SigEp- a Fraternity House is more than just a building; it embodies the image of the entire Fraternity. I hope you come back strong as ever
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 6:09pm):
Best wishes to all the SigEp men. This is a tragedy that will take much time to overcome. Regardless of past behavior, let this incident be an eye opener and put things into perspective; life comes before anything, no matter the situation.
The South Dakota Alpha Chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon sends all their prayers for you!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 6:23pm):
Having crap dumped on your head and your house burn down must make for a bad week...
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 6:24pm):
The carvings were actually intact after the '99 fire, but the current one destroyed it. Contrary to the rumors spreading around, the fire did not start in the dumpsters as I saw them this morning and they were completely and totally unscathed by fire. The plastic tops were not melted and nothing was charred inside our out.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 6:51pm):
The police officer just rolled up to the house. There were already people warning the Sigep members to get out of the house. She never got out of her car. My prayers are with SigEp, but the officer who dialed it in is taking credit for doing the smallest fraction of her job.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 7:13pm):
Too bad Sigep didn't save those buckets for water.
Zach Heise (May 13, 2008 @ 7:28pm):
Just a heads up if any SigEp-Beta guys are reading this; I just spoke with reps at www.gillware.com the data recovery company - they run a professional data recovery service on Excelsior Drive. If you can recover the remains of your computers from the house, they will try to save your hard drive and attempt to recover its data for FREE. Normally, they charge $500-$700 for that...I would definitely take them up on the offer!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 7:30pm):
A bunch of people are lamenting about the loss of "stuff." You can acquire new material goods. Its been done. Yes it sucks its that "nothing" was saved, but at the same time 25 lives were saved despite the fact that the house now lies in ruins. Unfortunate that it happened. However watching the battle between the elements (water vs. fire) was a nice study break. Glad everyone is okay. You're Badgers, you'll make it through.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:05pm):
i live in the sammy house at the end of lake street. glad to hear these guys made it out safe and my condolences - it could've just as easily been our house that burnt to the ground... all these frat houses (not all) but about half of them are tinderboxes. makes you wonder..
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:09pm):
all in favor of turning Sig EP into a verb, say "ay"...
Can be used in place of "you got burned" or "you just got destroyed"...."you all just got sig epped"
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:10pm):
SigEp would like to thank all the generous donations from the rest of the Greek Community. The striped shirts and white shell necklaces have been true life savers!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:14pm):
you just got sig epped!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:17pm):
We love you boys!!! Our thoughts and prayers are with you. Sig Eps are tough, and we know you're going to pull through this and be stronger than ever. The entire Greek community is here for you!
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 9:27pm):
Maybe they should have used a bucket brigade
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 10:28pm):
to the 3:55pm
i never said the frat house deserved to burn down nor did i laugh about the incident. I said it was ironic and congratulated the dumbass who left the cigarette in the trash (apparently that's not true, thanks badger for the false info) in a sarcastic manner. Congratulations to you for being ignorant and a dumbass.
p.s i don't believe in hell, but if i did i'm sure your ignorance surpasses my sarcasm, winning you a first class trip there.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 10:36pm):
WOW....as a NON-greek member I am more appalled by the people who are saying that these boys deserved this than I ever could be of any of the allegations that they hazed. Remember, they were allegations that haven’t even been proven guilty. No one, and I mean no one deserves to go a loss like that…and I expected more class and compassion from students at UW Madison. I have always been proud to be a student here, but after seeing the lack of sympathy that some of you have for their situation, I am questioning myself of how much community there actually is here. SigEp, the majority of us are here to support you and you are definitely in our thoughts and prayers
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 11:17pm):
To everyone that has wished myself and my SigEp brothers well we thank you. To everyone who has been as disrespectful as ever I just ask that you please take some time to view us not as a stereotype but as people who have just gone through tragedy and leave us to find out what the future holds for us before you go back to bashing us like you always will. We need each other now more than ever and thankfully the signs of strength within our fraternity have proven to be strong. We will rebuild and then you can have your fodder for mocking all you want back but until then please let us move forward.
Anonymous (May 13, 2008 @ 11:36pm):
For all of the people that are saying that the Badger Herald is reporting accurately, notice that the article says "According to a SigEp member..." That doesn't mean that's what they're saying happened.
Anyways, best of luck SigEp from a fellow Greek. I hope you can replace most of your stuff and I'm glad you're all fine.
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 9:58am):
The type of hazing done was out of line. I have many good friends withing the greek system and have never heard of such grotesque actions. I do believe in Karma and whether or not the fire is a result of that, no one will know. Good to hear everyone is safe though, such hazing is not worth dying over.
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 10:14am):
I am an alumnus of UW as well as Sig Ep. Some of the comments here truly embarrass me. It is sad to know there
are UW students who are so ignorant. Hopefully the karma you speak of will not turn and bite you in the ass. To the men of sig ep, we alumni will be in touch and help you through this
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 11:09am):
These comments are embarrassing? Getting poop and pee poured on you... now THAT'S embarrassing.
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 11:12am):
you just got sig epped!
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 12:39pm):
I cannot believe some of the things I am reading here. These comments are unbelievable... to say these boys deserved this and that this is karma is sickening... I am shocked and appalled by my fellow UW students. This could happen to anyone, and thank goodness the community is being so supportive. We love you Sig Ep!
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 1:01pm):
10:36pm last night...well stated
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 2:53pm):
Seriously, who hazes anyone after innitiation and DURING FINALS WEEK. You all need to stop being dumb stop saying that is what caused the fired. They are students and need support.
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 4:08pm):
good luck on your finals.
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 5:50pm):
sources indicate that the fire began as an easily extinguishable flame, but blazed out of control after reaching a pledge's collection of Italian hair gel and abercrombie cologne. "The fire was estimated to have caused $750,000 of damage" but that was before counting missing abercrombie and hollister t-shirts, expensive blue jeans, and retro nike sneakers
i kind of wish, if the fire had to have happened, that a joint started it... then the brainiac who started it could totally redefine burning one down
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 6:53pm):
5:50 can join 10:28. I think everyone knows what kind of subhuman garbage you are.
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 7:39pm):
surely the fact that the herald has been misreporting in this incident may indicate that they may have blown the hazing thing a little out of proportion? i hope we can all remember the comics they posted that portrayed sorority girls as trashy whores? so obviously they're on our side...
and for those of you who chalk this up to karma should be ashamed of yourselves, and should be awaiting some bad karma for the disgusting comments.
we are all students of this university, and greek or non-greek we should be badgers first. i had a sig ep stay in my house yesterday and all he had on him was a wallet and a bag of generic toiletries from the red cross. would you really wish that on someone?
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 7:44pm):
My condolences and good luck in the rebuilding process- shame on the people who said that Sig Ep deserved this- no one does- how would you like it if this happened to you?
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 9:19pm):
why are people still focusing on the hazing incident? most frats haze anyways... the most important thing is that all the guys in the house are safe.
and why would you say karma is a bitch? thats not even funny. maybe next time you make a mistake, your house will burn down? have a good laugh about that.
Anonymous (May 14, 2008 @ 9:56pm):
On the whole, I do believe people are being supportive. Everybody who was outside that night was shocked and realized that nobody deserves that. Good luck boys. You'll get through it and will be a stronger fraternity as a result.
Anonymous (May 15, 2008 @ 11:14am):
some of you people are commenting about a hazing incident as if it were fact. It is not. I know it makes it easier for you to apply your stereotypes, but it just isn't based on fact. The blind hatred some of you have for fraternity members is odd. Is it jealousy or simply ignorance? Are you just following the heard? Truth is, you don't know what goes on unless you have been through it.
Anonymous (May 15, 2008 @ 1:05pm):
"i live in the sammy house at the end of lake street."
no, you don't, as sammy doesn't exist anymore.
Anonymous (May 15, 2008 @ 6:44pm):
im not in the greek system here, but i cannot believe people would stereotype frats like this. not only is it rude and uncalled for, you know NOTHING about this group of guys and what they have gone through. to wish something as dangerous and tragic as a fire on a group of guys that not only do you not know (and would it even matter if you did?) but also a group of people who attend the same university as you is despicable. all of you "sconnies" pride yourselves on your "minnesota and midwest"-nice, but in reality you are all a bunch of tactless, judgemental assholes. these guys lost everything and all i can say for you is you've lost your dignity. congradua-fuckin-lations.
WE LOVE YOU SIGEP
Anonymous (May 15, 2008 @ 10:20pm):
Typical--people hiding under the cover of "anonymous" to throw cheap shots at frats.
Most of us choose not to live the lifestyle of the stereotypical frat boy, but we can at least show some sympathy for them losing all of their stuff.
Anonymous (May 16, 2008 @ 7:37am):
wow. anonymous, hateful comments: lame. get over yourselves and realize that we don't want to hear it. Greek or non-Greek (I can't even believe that this has to be said) thank goodness every one is alive.
SigEp, I'm sorry your support isn't more unanimous, regardless of whatever else you've been through. I promise that MOST of us are here for you.
Anonymous (May 16, 2008 @ 11:27am):
i would like to say i hope that the sigep members turn out all right and that your finals went well, its good that all of you left the house unscathed. Best wishes
I would also like to comment on 6:44 last night. All of these comments are anonymous, how would you know where half of these people are from, Minnesota or Wisconsin... I would imagine that you are the ignorant, tactless, judgmental asshole in this situation. This school is full of diversity and to pass judgment that most of these comments are from students from the Midwest is fucking stupid, get over yourself, wherever you are from.
Anonymous (May 16, 2008 @ 10:27pm):
6:44 You ridicule those for stereotyping the greek lifestlye, but then you stereotype "sconnies" or people from the midwest. Who said we were the ones saying they deserve it? There are a mixture of people making a variety of comments--don't be a hypocrite!
I tend to think i am neither an asshole nor judgemental. I could care less what supposedly happend with the hazing incident. These are two separate things, and this is a life-altering event! These young men just lost everything they had. Although some things are replaceable, what about pictures and things like that? My heart goes out to you guys...be strong and you can pull through!
Anonymous (May 17, 2008 @ 8:03pm):
As a SigEp member, I'm used to the negative comments and stereotypes associated with the greek system. Reading some of these comments, it really makes me sick to my stomach to realize that people truly think this is funny. Personally, I lost all of my belongings, save for my wallet, phone, and the clothes I was wearing that night. My insurance covers $4,000. I'm putting myself through school (I WISH the stereotype about frat guys and their parents credit cards was true), and lost WAY more than $4,000 of stuff. In fact, to all the frat bashers, go through your apartment right now and think about how much you would lose if your house burned to the ground. If you still would post the same comments here, than I truly feel sad for you.
To everyone else, thank you so much for all the support. Its an awful situation that I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy, but the caring support from the greek community, and most of the UW community as a whole has made this situation much easier to deal with.
Finally, to the other SigEps who have posted here, whether alumni, or from other schools, know this: We are stronger today than we ever were before. We will be back. We will rebuild. It's a great day to be a SigEp.
Anonymous (May 17, 2008 @ 8:12pm):
Why hasnt the herald gotten rid of some of these comments?
"Offensive language, personal attacks, or irrelevant comments may be deleted"
Then again, this is the same biased newspaper that ran with the hazing story (turned out ODOS didnt see it as hazing...), so I'm not surprised.
Anonymous (May 18, 2008 @ 4:38pm):
Sig Ep...hope things are turning for the better. One day you will have a home again and a new red door.
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