LINCOLN, Neb. - Fraternities at Lincoln universities have forgotten the lessons learned from a fatal 2006 fire at Nebraska Wesleyan, a Lincoln fire inspector said.

Rick Campos told the Lincoln Journal Star that students at Nebraska Wesleyan and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln are covering smoke detectors, disregarding fire alarms and setting fire to items in their fraternity houses. He said the problem appears to be limited to fraternity members, not students in sororities or living in campus dorms.

"What's concerning is that I can see we're headed down a slippery slope here," Campos said. "If we keep up on course, we're gonna have another fire and another fatality."

The 2006 fire at the Phi Kappta Tau fraternity house claimed the life of 19-year-old Ryan Stewart of Ord.

The search warrant affidavit released shortly after the fire said fraternity members told authorities fireworks were set off in or around the fraternity house shortly before the fire broke out. Investigators confiscated dozens of bottle rockets, 1 1/2-inch firecrackers, pop rockets and other larger fireworks. Some fireworks were also found on the grounds around the fraternity, the court document said.

Authorities said after the fatal fire that it probably was not set intentionally.

Nebraska Wesleyan has since installed sprinklers in its residence halls, apartments and on-campus fraternities. The University of Nebraska has required housing on all four of its campuses to install fire suppression systems before the 2017 school year.

Most students enrolled at the Nebraska Wesleyan campus weren't there when the 2006 fire broke out. So, classes are offered there and at Nebraska-Lincoln to teach students about fire safety.

"Every year you basically have to teach the same thing again and again," Campos said.

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Information from: Lincoln Journal Star, http://www.journalstar.com

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