Federal officials on Tuesday warned students moving to college to take steps to protect themselves from the rising number of fires on and near campuses.
At a media briefing on the University of Maryland campus, officials released a new National Fire Protection Association report that cites an increase in college housing fires: 3,300 in 2005, up from 1,800 in 1998. From 2002 through 2005, there were 39 deaths and about 400 injuries in dormitories, fraternities, sororities and barracks as a result of fires.
But the report, which was based on estimates from two national databases, did not include off-campus fires. USA TODAY reported last year that off-campus fires were the most deadly.