On a weekend night in Columbus, a crowd of people in Ohio State colors gathered outdoors, and what began as laughter ended with two men burning in the open air. The story arrives the way such things often do now, through a phone's recording shared faster than any witness could report it, and the police learned of it only after it had already traveled far beyond the street where it happened. Ohio State has pulled the Sigma Alpha Epsilon chapter from campus life while it and local investigators work out who was involved and how the fire began. What remains unsettled is less the video itself than
Ohio State Suspends Sigma Alpha Epsilon Chapter Pending Probe of Video Showing Men on Fire
Two men were burned in the incident and were receiving medical care, according to the university.
Police received no calls; they learned of it from a video online.
Mark
The video is what set this in motion, isn't it? Nobody called police when it happened.
Mimi
Right. Sgt. Joe Albert said there were no calls for service at the location on Saturday. Police only heard about it Sunday evening, when someone called to say the video was circulating online.
Mark
So the public learned of it before the authorities did, in effect.
Mimi
That's what the timeline suggests. The video prompted the police call, and the university's suspension followed on Monday.
Luke
I'd be careful about how much that timeline can carry. The Saturday date is Albert's reading of when it appears to have happened. That's not a confirmed fact.
Mark
What else is unconfirmed?
Luke
Quite a lot. The university hasn't said how Sigma Alpha Epsilon is tied to the event, or whether the burned men are students. It also hasn't said what condition they're in.
Mimi
The one thing the university did say is that they're receiving medical care. That's the human center of this, two men who were burned.
Luke
And the suspension is interim. It isn't a finding that the fraternity did anything. It's a hold while the investigation runs.
Mark
What does the fraternity's national office say?
Mimi
CEO Steve Mitchell said it's investigating and cooperating with the university and police, and will hold those responsible accountable. He didn't say who that might be.
Luke
Which fits. Everyone is promising an investigation, and nobody has yet described what happened beyond what the video shows.
Le Pouls
- A video spreading across social media shows two men engulfed in flames while a crowd in red and white laughs and shouts.
- Police received no calls at the time, and the first alert came Sunday when someone reported the clip circulating online.
- Ohio State has placed Sigma Alpha Epsilon on interim suspension and referred the matter to university and Columbus police.
- Bystanders rushed in with clothing and a small fire extinguisher as the men rolled on the ground, and both remain under medical care.
- Key questions stay open: the fraternity's link to the event, whether the burned men are students, and what charges or discipline may follow.
On a weekend night in Columbus, a crowd of people in Ohio State colors gathered outdoors, and what began as laughter ended with two men burning in the open air. The story arrives the way such things often do now, through a phone's recording shared faster than any witness could report it, and the police learned of it only after it had already traveled far beyond the street where it happened. Ohio State has pulled the Sigma Alpha Epsilon chapter from campus life while it and local investigators work out who was involved and how the fire began. What remains unsettled is less the video itself than the question it leaves behind: how a gathering of young people can slide from celebration into harm so quickly, and how much of that is ever seen by anyone who might have stopped it.
A video that spread online over the weekend shows a crowd gathered outdoors, many dressed in Ohio State's red and white. They are laughing and shouting. In the middle of them, a man sits on the ground with his sweatpants on fire.
Then he lunges at another person and tackles him, and that man's clothing catches fire too. The two roll across the ground, tearing at their clothes, while people from the crowd step in. One appears to be holding a small fire extinguisher.
On Monday, Ohio State placed the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity on interim suspension while the incident is investigated. The university has referred the matter to university and Columbus police, calling it an "extremely concerning incident" and saying those involved are receiving medical care.
Much remains unclear. The university has not said how the fraternity is connected to the event, whether the two burned men are students, or how they are doing. Columbus police say the incident appears to have happened Saturday, but no one called for help at the time. Their first word came Sunday, when someone reported the video online.
The national fraternity says behavior that violates its standards has no place in the organization and that it is working with university and police investigators. For now the suspension is interim. What investigators learn about who was involved and how the fire started will decide whether this ends in discipline, charges, or both.
A video that began circulating on social media over the weekend shows a crowd gathered outdoors, many of them dressed in Ohio State's red and white. They are laughing and shouting. In the middle of them, a man sits on the ground with his sweatpants on fire.
The man then lunges at a second person and tackles him. The second man's clothing catches fire as well. The two roll on the ground, tearing at their clothes to get them off, while several people in the crowd step in. One of them appears to be holding a small fire extinguisher.
On Monday, Ohio State placed the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity on interim suspension while the incident is investigated. University spokesperson Benjamin Johnson said the school has referred the matter to both university police and Columbus police. In a statement, he called it an "extremely concerning incident" and said the individuals involved are receiving medical care. He added that the university expects students and student organizations to uphold a safe and healthy environment.
Several basic questions remain unanswered. The university did not say how the fraternity is connected to the event. It did not say whether the two men who were burned are students. It also did not describe their condition as of Monday.
Columbus Police Sgt. Joe Albert said the incident appears to have happened Saturday. Police received no calls for service at the location at the time. Their first notice came Sunday evening, when someone phoned in to report that the video was spreading online.
Sigma Alpha Epsilon's national organization has also responded. CEO Steve Mitchell said behavior that violates the fraternity's high standards has no place in the organization. He said the fraternity is actively investigating the circumstances, working closely with university officials and local law enforcement, and will take appropriate action to hold those responsible accountable based on what the investigation finds.
Ohio State enrolls more than 60,000 students. The suspension is interim, meaning it holds while the inquiries run. What the university and Columbus police establish about who was involved, and how the fire started, will determine whether the matter ends in further discipline or in charges.
Citations marquantes
The university is aware of this extremely concerning incident, and the individuals in question are receiving medical care.— Benjamin Johnson, Ohio State spokesperson
Behavior that violates the fraternity's high standards has no place in the organization, and those responsible will be held accountable based on the investigation.— Steve Mitchell, CEO of Sigma Alpha Epsilon (paraphrased)
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