Report on university housing fires

The US Fire Administration recently published a report on university housing fires (fires in college and university residential buildings that include dormitories and fraternity and sorority houses).

A summary of the findings:

• An estimated 3,800 university housing fires occur each year in the United States.
• Eighty-three percent of university housing fires are cooking fires. Small, confined cooking fires account for 77 percent of university housing fires. Cooking fires account for 6 percent of all non-confined university housing fires.
• University housing fires peak in September and October; this peak accounts for 23 percent of fires.
• The three main causes of non-confined university housing fires are intentionally set fires (17 percent), open flames (15 percent), and other unintentional causes (12 percent).
• One-fifth of non-confined university housing fires in bedrooms are started by candles.

http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/downloads/pdf/tfrs/v10i1.pdf