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On the night of May 12, University of Wisconsin sophomore Nate Anderson and junior Mike Miesen were both studying for their upcoming finals — one was at the library and the other in the study of the Sigma Phi Epsilon house, 237 Langdon St.

At about 11:30 p.m., Miesen, the fraternity’s chapter president, heard screaming and yelling. When he turned to look at the back of the house, he saw a fire.

Miesen recalls what appeared to be a small flame, which could easily be contained by a fire extinguisher, quickly growing and igniting the house.

Meanwhile, at the library, Anderson, a fraternity member living in the house, said a mass wave of text messages saying “there is a fire” spread.

But by the time Anderson arrived at the house, fire trucks were already there to stop the fire and keep it from spreading to the two neighboring apartment buildings.

With hundreds of people now standing on the street watching the “spectacle,” Miesen said Dean of Students Lori Berquam and Greek advisers Jeff Bensen and Barb Katz arranged a bus for all members to sit on, while police and fire departments investigated the situation.

At 3:30 a.m., Miesen received phone calls from presidents of different fraternities and sororities offering to help out.

“The community was incredibly supportive,” Miesen said. “I can’t expect anything better.”

With no more than his cell phone, wallet and the clothes on his back, Miesen had lost everything, but admitted it could have been much worse.

“A lot of people where making a big deal about the stuff, which is understandable,” Miesen said. “But nobody got hurt, which was most important, by and large.”

For Anderson, who had four finals left to take and no books or notes left, the fire posed a challenge.

According to Anderson, the university gave them as much time as needed to take their finals while providing notes from teachers or other students. The University Bookstore rented them books for free so fraternity members could study for exams.

Since the fire, the chapter is trying to move on and things appear to be returning to normal. Members intending to live in the house this past summer sublet apartments, and Tau Kappa Epsilon invited the members to move for the year into the third floor of their house at 216 Langdon St.

The chapter plans to begin to reconstruct the new house within the next two to three years to be environmentally friendly under a new green standard of LEED sustainability.

With the rush season beginning, Miesen said the organization will still be able to recruit successfully with events held at different locations.

“It is a terrible thing to happen,” Miesen said. “But we are excited for this semester because it can prove a group of members can work together.”

According to Madison Fire Department spokesperson Bernadette Galvez, the investigation is still ongoing and there is no updated information on the cause of the fire.

Information Box:

$1 million worth of damage to the house.

Up to $20,000 given to members by their insurance companies for belongings.