For Ed Comeau, the die was cast when he went looking for cheap student housing.  He found the local fire house. Rent was free -- as long as he and seven other housemates served on the volunteer fire department.

That was in the early 1980s at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. Ever since, Comeau has been hooked on fire safety and campus-fire safety in particular. Today, Comeau -- a civil engineer turned fire investigator -- heads the Center for Campus Fire Safety. He founded the Massachusetts-based group three years ago to track and, more importantly, reduce the number of fires on campuses around the country. 

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) estimates that U.S. fire departments respond to an average of 2,460 fires in dorms, fraternities, sororities, and barracks every year. Comeau says about 11 to 14 fatalities occur annually from campus fires. That's a small number compared to the 4,000 lives lost due to fires every year. But Comeau believes that by teaching college students safe fire practices, the annual number of fire fatalities can be substantially reduced.

“Ask a college student about fire safety and all they know is what they learned in elementary school: stop, drop and roll,” Comeau said in a recent telephone interview. “They’ve been taught what they need to do if a fire is imminent but never taught how to choose responsible, fire-safe housing.” That means stressing the importance of sprinklers, smoke alarms, fire extinguishers, the use of proper electrical extension cords and other things.    There are 17 million students now enrolled in college. “That’s the largest captive demographic that can be reached with fire safety messages,” Comeau noted. “If we can influence their behavior, we will see a dramatic change in fire safety.”

Comeau's group says four out of five of the campus deaths occur in off-campus student housing, which is often rented one-and two- family homes. The group cites four common factors are behind these deaths: