1998 — March 22, Fire, mountain cabin, youth on spring break, Madisonburg Mt., PA– 11

–11  AP (Aliah Wright). “Eleven Die in Cabin Fire.” Daily Herald, Tyrone, PA, 3-23-1998, p.1.

–11  AP (Aliah D. Wright). “Fire cause a mystery.” Daily News, Huntingdon, PA, 3-24-1998, 1.

–11  AP. “Tragedy may spur push for statewide safety rules.” Daily News, 3-25-1998, p. 8.

–11  Daily Item, Sunbury, PA (Amanda Keister). “A void that time can’t fill. 6-23-2008.

–11  NFPA. The U.S. Fire Problem. “Home fires with ten or more fatalities (1980-2007).”

–11  Tribune-Democrat, Johnstown, PA. “Arson ruled out as cause…cabin fire.” 4-16-1998, A7

 

Narrative Information

 

March 23: “Herndon, PA. (AP) – Members of this small, close-knit community tried to come to grips today with the deaths of 11 young friends in a mountain fire…The 11 victims died early Sunday [March 22] when fire engulfed a hunting cabin on Madisonburg Mountain, 20 miles northeast of State College. Authorities said most of the teens and young adults came from the Herndon area, about 30 miles north of Harrisburg….Police said the cabin was engulfed in flames when they arrived at 5:20 a.m. Sunday. The cause of the fire had not been released by mid morning….[cabin co-owner] said the cabin had many windows and doors. He said he didn’t understand why the victims didn’t get out. ‘Were they asphyxiated? Were they overcome by smoke? Were the kids maybe smoking and one fell asleep?’ he asked….

 

“The two-story oak and pine cabin sat on a secluded, heavily wooded site off a winding two-lane

road. Its crumpled metal roof sat askew on what remained of the cabin’s frame and foundation… Kent Rishel of Madisonburg, a maintenance man at a nearby church camp, was shocked by what he saw when he went by the cabin site Sunday afternoon. ‘Firetrucks were there. Police vans were there. Ambulances were there. But there wasn’t even a resemblance of a building. There wasn’t anything left,’ he said. The students, who were on spring break, arrived at the cabin Friday night and were planning to go home Sunday….” (AP. Aliah Wright. “Eleven Die in Cabin Fire.” Daily Herald, Tyrone, PA, 3-23-1998, p. 1.

 

March 24: “….The victims died from asphyxiation and carbon monoxide poisoning in the swift moving fire, sometime between 3: 10 a.m. and 5:36 a.m. Sunday, officials said.” (AP/Aliah D. Wright. “Fire cause a mystery.” Daily News, Huntingdon, PA, 3-24-1998, pp. 1-2.)

 

March 25: “Harrisburg (AP) – The deaths of 11 people in a smoky mountain cabin point to the need for statewide construction regulations, especially in remote areas where help can be far away, a fire-safety advocate said. Pennsylvania has no statewide requirement that buildings be equipped with smoke detectors or fire extinguishers. That responsibility is ‘at the whim’ of  local governments, said John Brenner, director of the Pennsylvania Fire Services Institute….State police said that no smoke detectors were found in the charred remains of the cabin in Miles Township, near State College. The township does not require smoke detectors to be installed in any buildings, said solicitor John Miller III.

 

“The situation in Miles Township is common in Pennsylvania, Brenner said. About half of the state’s municipalities have no building codes, which set the standards for construction and can include safety features such as smoke detectors, he said. Brenner’s organization for several years has pushed for legislation that would establish statewide standards for construction. A bill that passed the House last year is awaiting action in the Senate.” (AP (Jim Strader). “Tragedy may spur push for statewide safety rules.” Daily News, Huntingdon, PA, 3-25-1998, p. 8.)

 

April 16: “Madisonburg — The cabin fire that killed 11 people on a camping trip in Centre County last month was not deliberately set, state fire officials said. ‘There was just nothing there to support any possibility’ of arson, state police Fire Marshall Terry Miller said Tuesday. ‘We have been able to effectively dispel and disprove that.’….Investigators continue to work on the case. Examinations of the cabin’s heating and electrical systems have yielded no clues. Miller said. State police are still awaiting test results from their crime laboratories in Harrisburg, as well as tests performed at an independent laboratory in Maryland, according to Miller.” (Tribune-Democrat, Johnstown, PA. “Arson ruled out as cause of deadly cabin fire.” 4-16-1998, A7.)

 

2008: “….No cause was ever determined….” (Daily Item, Sunbury, PA (Amanda Keister). “A void that time can’t fill. 6-23-2008.)

Sources

 

Associated Press (Aliah Wright). “Eleven Die in Cabin Fire.” Daily Herald, Tyrone, PA, 3-23-1998, p. 1. Accessed 8-9-2015 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=126636329&sterm

 

Associated Press (Aliah D. Wright). “Fire cause a mystery.” Daily News, Huntingdon, PA, 3-24-1998, pp. 1-2. Accessed 8-9-2015: http://newspaperarchive.com/us/pennsylvania/huntingdon/huntingdon-daily-news/1998/03-24/

 

Associated Press (Jim Strader). “Tragedy may spur push for statewide safety rules.” Daily News, Huntingdon, PA, 3-25-1998, p. 8. Accessed 8-9-2015 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=243246576&sterm=madisonburg+fire

 

Daily Item, Sunbury, PA (Amanda Keister). “A void that time can’t fill. 6-23-2008. Accessed 8-9-2015: http://www.dailyitem.com/news/a-void-that-time-can-t-fill/article_737a6ce4-1fed-59c2-9b5b-65a66c05e67b.html

 

National Fire Protection Association. The U.S. Fire Problem. “Home fires with ten or more fatalities (1980-2007).” Accessed 5-26-2016 at:

http://www.nfpa.org:80/itemDetail.asp?categoryID=953&itemID=30981&URL=Research%20&%20Reports/Fire%20statistics/The%20U.S.%20fire%20problem

 

Tribune-Democrat, Johnstown, PA. “Arson ruled out as cause of deadly cabin fire.” 4-16-1998, A7. Accessed 8-9-2015: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=224947056&sterm=madisonburg+fire