Contact: Ed Comeau, Publisher
Campus Firewatch
www.campus-firewatch.com

413-323-6002 (tel)
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ecomeau@campus-firewatch.com

Fire in off-campus house in Menomonie, Wisconsin, kills three students

Seventeen people have died in campus-related fires this academic year, the second-highest total since 2001

BELCHERTOWN, Mass., April 5, 2008 — Three students from the University of Wisconsin – Stout were killed in an early-morning, off-campus house fire in Menomonie, Wisconsin. According to the University, the call was received by the dispatch center at 3:32 a.m. and it was reported that the house was filled with smoke upon arrival. The three victims were found in second-floor bedrooms. They were transported to the Red Cedar Medical Center where they were pronounced dead.

The victims are identified as:

• April C. Englund, 21, West St. Paul, Minnesota
• Amanda Jean Rief, 20, Chaska, Minnesota
• Scott A. Hams, 23, Hayward, Wisconsin

Campus Firewatch has identified 129 student-related fire deaths across the nation from 1999 with 84 percent of them occurring in off-campus housing, which is where more than two-thirds of the students live, according to the U.S. Department of Education. Common factors in a number of these fires include:

• Lack of automatic fire sprinkler system
• Missing or disabled smoke alarms
• Careless disposal of smoking materials
• Impaired judgment from alcohol consumption

These tragedies demonstrate the importance of knowing how to prevent a fire and what to do if one breaks out, no matter where you may be.

A detailed information sheet on campus-related fires, a compilation of these fires and a map of the locations can be downloaded from the RESOURCE page of Campus Firewatch at www.campus-firewatch.com.

Campus Firewatch, in publication since 2000, is a monthly electronic newsletter focusing on campus fire safety.For more information, visit our website at www.campus-firewatch.com.