The howling of fire alarms throughout the late night and early morning is becoming all too common of an occurrence at various fraternity houses surround Miami University's campus. However, the existence of an actual fire is not as customary.
Miami junior Michael Vaughn, member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, said the triggering of false fire alarms has been a significant issue at the house.
"I'm really frustrated because there is no way of telling who is doing it, so it just keeps on happening," Vaughn said. "The last time it happened I heard the alarm and just assumed it wasn't a real fire."
According to Oxford Fire Chief John Detherage, the activation of fire alarms in the absence of a fire is not a new issue to Miami's fraternity houses.
"This is my third school year here and every year there are multiple false alarms," Detherage said. "We make a fair amount of runs every year for that kind of stuff, and there have been quite a lot this year."
Detherage added that triggering these alarms in absence of a fire is punishable by law, however, finding the individual responsible for the activation is difficult when many of the pull stations that prompt the alarm are located in easily accessible areas.
"If we are able to figure out who pulled the alarm, they can definitely be cited," Dehterage said. "There is a fire regulation that essentially says that tampering with fire alarm and fire safety equipment is punishable."
As for what motivation individuals would have to falsely trigger the alarms, Detherage credits the large crowds and the possibility of pranks.
"Many of the alarms that go off do so during parties," Detherage said. "There can also be outsiders sneaking in the house and pulling the alarm which causes the fraternities to mess with each other back and forth. The pull stations are located right by the door so if it is open it would be fairly easy to reach in pull the alarm and run away."
Matt Frazier, Intrafraternity Council (IFC) vice president of facilities management, reiterated Detherage's statement and agreed much of the false alarm activation occurs during parties or late at night.
Frazier also said he anticipated this issue would become less frequent as many fraternities have gone dry.
Both Detherage and Frazier mentioned other fire hazards, such as the discharging of fire extinguishers and even candles, can contribute to fire alarms going off.
"It is a waste of a valuable resource to have the fire department responding to false alarms," Frazier said. "It's unfortunate that pulling the fire alarm results in taking this resource from people who may actually need it."
In regards to the potential installment of plastic guards, intended to hinder the ability to pull the alarm, both Detherage and Frazier believe that if an individual intends to activate the alarm, they will proceed despite the guard.
"I doubt it would make a difference," Frazier said. "The alarms still have to be accessible, and there still would be no accountability toward whoever triggered it. If someone wants to pull the alarm it will get pulled regardless."
Detherage and Frazier also agreed security cameras would be a feasible solution to solve this issue, however the maintenance and financial responsibilities associated with a security system could generate difficulties for the fraternities.
Frazier also made a comparison between the false alarms reported in residence halls on campus and those from the fraternity houses, insisting that residence halls are also notorious for having false alarms.
According to Frazier, updating systems used in the houses can reduce the false activation of these alarms.
Sigma Phi Epsilon and Sigma Alpha Epsilon are two examples of fraternities that have updated their fire safety systems.
"A lot of the houses are using older systems," Frazier said. "The newer houses have more traditional alarms that don't have the pull tabs, but instead are the smoke detectors that are more difficult to trigger manually. The older alarms are adequate, but were not built with the greatest protection. The IFC and the fire department want to update the systems in all the houses."
Frazier said updating the fire safety systems would be expensive, costing thousands of dollars, but argued the safety aspect and savings in insurance would compensate for the initial cost.
According to Vaughn, the false alarms are one of the most significant problems at his house. While the false alarms continue to cause disturbance for those living in or around various fraternity houses, Detherage said the Oxford Fire Department remains committed to responding to every alarm notification it receives.
