The Tempe Fire Department put out a fire with eight-foot flames at the Sigma Chi fraternity house Tuesday night.
The fire occurred at the Alpha Drive house at about 11 p.m. after students overstuffed the fireplace with wood chopped from pallets, senior fire inspector Mike Reichling said.
ASU police were alerted to the fire as they were driving by and saw flames, spokesman Jay Spradling said.
Creosote in the chimney also caught fire and contributed to the flames, Reichling said.
All students were evacuated from the house until the fire department was able to extinguish the flames. They were able to return directly afterward, he said.
Reichling said damage estimates weren’t yet available, but there
would have been more damage if the home wasn’t so old.
“It has a strong, stout chimney that handled a lot of the fire,” he said.
There were no injuries.
