We didn't start the fire.
As a result, the Durham Fire Marshal has not yet decided whether to issue Duke a fire permit for the March 8 home men's basketball game against North Carolina, University officials said Thursday.
Larry Moneta, vice president for student affairs, said he is currently responding to questions posed by the fire marshal regarding the details of the burning of two benches without a permit. The bonfire started after the Blue Devils' victory over the Tar Heels in the Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill Wednesday.
"This is a very delicate process. Fires are dangerous, and having one takes extreme cooperation, which we generally get," Moneta said. "[Getting a permit] is not automatic. Many of us will have to work over time now."
He said Duke had preparations in place for the post-game celebration, including staff members stationed around the Main West Quadrangle, but officials were unable to control the crowd of hundreds.
Duke University Police Department officers arrived before midnight, but none made any attempts to extinguish the fire. At approximately 12:10 a.m. the Durham Fire Department arrived and put out the blaze.
"Unfortunately a very small number of people can ruin it for everyone," Moneta said. "The renegade action can come back to haunt us. We are committed to trying to get a permit for the March 8 game-where we'll beat Carolina."
The University is currently gathering information regarding the event and has not made any decisions regarding consequent actions.
Many students said even though it would be unfortunate if Duke could not obtain a permit for future home games against UNC or for potential NCAA Championship games, bonfires would burn for Duke victories with or without permits.
Sophomore Frank Jemison noted that the Durham Fire Department should give Duke a permit because it would give the department an opportunity to regulate something that is going to inevitably happen.
"It would be better to have the A-Team and the fire department there, but I think we're still going to burn benches if we beat UNC," he said.
Following Duke's win over the Tar Heels Feb. 9, 2005, the fire marshal revoked the University's permit because students threw more benches into the bonfire than was allowed. No permits were given for the remainder of the 2004-2005 season games.
Fire permits were re-issued to the University for the Duke-UNC game March 4, 2006, but with new restrictions that indicated how many and how frequently benches could be added to bonfires.
Sophomore Peter Williams said he understood the fire department's concern and added that students should have known better. He also noted that because the bonfire was not well planned, it ended very quickly and was not as much fun as it could have been.
Regardless, bonfires are a great demonstration of students' team spirit, and students should not be punished for supporting their school, senior Harry Jones said.
"It was a big win," he noted. "It was as memorable as any other bonfires-students were just expressing themselves."
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