There's a Spirit Can Ne'er Be Told

1 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 14 | SERVING TEXAS A&M SINCE 1893 | © 2019 STUDENT MEDIA 20years later The Bonfire Memorial is dedicated to those who died in the 1999 Aggie Bonfire Collapse. It stands on the ground where the Bonfire Stack was constructed that year. Robert Castro — THE BATTALION Hallowed ground The Bonfire tradition, the 1999 collapse and what it means to those involved two decades later By Sanna Bhai and Brady Stone from the Memorial Student Center until 1955 when and the upperclassmen oversaw cutting, trucking and @BhaiSanna & @bradystonex it was moved to Duncan Field near the Corps dorms. stacking. In 1992, Bonfire moved to the Polo Fields, where “Bonfire was peak Aggie-ness,” McInnis said. “It exas A&M changed forever on Nov. 18, the Bonfire Memorial stands today. The Corps be- was essential and fundamental and beautiful. The 1999, at 2:42 a.m., when the 59-foot- came voluntary in 1965, which led to the participa- motivation and the passion of Aggie students out- tall Bonfire Stack collapsed. Twelve tion of non-reg students in the building of Bonfire grew the structure, so the structure grew bigger and Aggies died and 27 were injured. To- and the creation of roles for each class year. bigger and bigger.” day, on that same ground, there stands In 1963, women were admitted into the university Ta memorial honoring those who lost their lives up- on a limited basis and began helping Bonfire prepa- holding a storied A&M tradition. rations. According to a 1980 Battalion article, the actual date that women began to help is unknown, The history but in the mid-1960s, women provided refreshments Bonfire was peak for students taking part in the cut and stack. In 1979, With the rivalry game against the University of women were officially allowed to help build the bon- Texas approaching, students in 1907 laid the ground- “Aggie-ness. It fire. However, some preferred to continue in their work for a new tradition that would come to be previous role, said Ann Goodman, who previously known as Aggie Bonfire. Bored with exam prepara- was essential and served as Women’s Bonfire Committee Advisor. tions and anxiety, the students set a 12-foot-high pile “I worked with the women who helped support of trash on fire in anticipation of the matchup with fundamental and the red pots, and the efforts to keep people hydrated the Longhorns, according to a 1979 Battalion article. and fed during cut and stack,” Goodman said. “The In 1909, students came together to hold an official ‘cookie crew’ was a number of women and students on-campus Bonfire the night before the UT game, beautiful.” that would help out by sponsoring those participating said Dion McInnis, Class of 2003 and current advisor Dion McInnis, in the cut by making cookies and decorating pots. to the upper leadership of Student Bonfire. The stu- Student Bonfi re advisor It was very much a community-building activity.” dent body, then made up of only men in the Corps of According to a 1968 Battalion article, the Bonfire Safety and security were a top priority for those Cadets, worked together to construct the Bonfire. It was considered to belong to the freshman class that involved in Bonfire, including the faculty and staff, was built annually on the Simpson Drill Field across built it, as they furnished most of the manpower, HISTORY ON PG. 2 There’s a Spirit Can Ne’er be Told In times of tragedy, the Aggie Spirit only grows stronger. On the 20th anniversary of the Bonfire collapse, we celebrate the lives of the fallen, pay tribute to their memories and answer “Here” in their absence. May we never forget that the Spirit that binds us is what makes us Aggies. 2 BONFIRE The Battalion | 11.14.19 2 big had happened. With his camera equip- HISTORY CONTINUED ment in hand, Beato rushed to the site, cap- turing photos of the tragedy minutes after. Goodman said. For years, the Bonfire stack “We heard it,” Beato said. “We heard it was heavily guarded to avoid early ignition. fall. We heard that crack. And that was the It was commonplace for students walking only thing going on at that time, 24-hour around campus at odd hours to be asked to push. So we heard it and we immediately present their student ID. knew it was that.” Students taking part in Bonfire were re- The first 9-1-1 call came in at 2:43 a.m., quired to take mandatory safety classes to the same time Goodman received a message learn ax holding techniques and other skills to her pager that the Bonfire Stack had col- needed to make the first cut, Goodman lapsed. said. First-time cutters had to wrap pieces “As a member of the critical incident re- of white medical tape around their thighs, sponse team, we responded to a number of known as ‘virgin stripes,’ to indicate that smaller incidents before that involved mi- they were inexperienced. nor accidents,” Goodman said. “After the “Despite the fact that we were probably collapse, my role then was to help with the not as thorough as we obviously needed triaging of who had been involved in the to be in regards to safety, there were safe- collapse, and finding out all of the students ty classes,” Goodman said. “There was an who were there and who were missing.” organized and regimented way of training People at the site reported hearing a loud people on how to use their equipment.” pop seconds before the collapse, and Com- stock said those working on the stack felt the BONFIRE DICTIONARY logs shift as it fell in a southeasterly direction toward New Main Drive. Cut “It swayed enough to throw me off bal- The fi rst stage of Bonfi re, where the logs ance, and by the time I regained my balance, are cut down. [the stack] was already starting to tip and go at that point,” Comstock said. “I just had to Stack grab onto the logs in front of me. It pret- The second stage of Bonfi re, where the ty much fell at the speed anything will fall logs are wired into their fi nal shape. over at. I was maybe knocked out for a few seconds when I hit the ground, but when I Burn opened my eyes, I got a face full of dirt and The fi nal phase of Bonfi re, when the realized I was trapped.” stack is lit. Comstock would lie trapped within the Pots 5,000-log stack for seven hours with his legs, arms and head wedged between the fallen Head gear all Bonfi re participants timber. are required to wear for safety. Each “A log had turned sideways and was at residence hall or Corps outfi t decorates my waist, and I couldn’t feel my legs, so I their pots differently. couldn’t tell if was paralyzed,” Comstock Redpot said. “My right arm was completely wedged in between two logs because that’s where I The offi cial leaders of Bonfi re, made grabbed to hang on to it. There was a log up of nine seniors and nine juniors on my head as well so I couldn’t really talk who oversee everything from the to anybody in the beginning.” design of the stack to the safety of the While waiting to be rescued from the participants. stack, Comstock said he remembers talking Virgin stripe to one of the first responders, College Sta- A white piece of tape around the leg tion firefighter Darrin Allen. used to show who is out at Bonfi re for “I was one of the first ones to find [Com- the fi rst time. stock] and I laid on the ground with him most of the morning while he was trapped,” t.u. frat house Allen said. “He gave me his mother’s tele- An outhouse placed on the very top of phone number, so that I could call and let Bonfi re, painted burnt orange. her know he was stuck in the collapse and that he was alive. Push The fi nal part of stack, when students Battalion file photos by JP Beato work shifts around the clock to fi nish Top: During the recovery effort, crews had to take the fallen stack apart piece by piece. Bonfi re. Bottom: Members of the 1999 Aggie football team lent their strength to the recovery effort. It was all However, there were student and faculty groups opposed to the construction of Bon- essentially fire citing harmful effects of the chemicals “ used to ignite the structure and the needless like a game cutting of lumber as issues. There was also fear that the fire would spread to nearby lo- of pick-up cations. This issue was taken to the Student WE REMEMBER. Senate in 1970, but resulted in a victory for sticks.” the beloved tradition, according to a 1979 Battalion article. Ann Goodman, With Bonfire being a university-wide former A&M administrator 11.18.1999 celebration, it was designated as a school During the rescue effort, it was deter- holiday up until 1973. The administration mined that the only safe way to get Com- allowed students to prepare to build the stock and others out was to remove the logs massive structure in time for the Thanks- by hand, one at a time, so as not to trigger giving game against UT. However, admin- further collapses that could harm rescue istrators began to realize that students used crews and those still trapped insite.

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