Sprinkler systems may soon be added to fraternity houses if Centre County fire inspectors have their way.

The inspectors spoke at Monday night's State College Borough Council work session to express their concern over the possibility of a fire during a fraternity party.

Some of the parties have more than 500 people in attendance, said Shawn Kauffman, a Centre County fire inspector. Because fraternity houses are zoned for residential use, they are not required to have the same exits as commercial buildings, he said.

"In the event of a fire, they're not going to make it out alive," Kaufman said.

In one example, Kaufman showed pictures of an island theme party at a local fraternity house. The basement walls of the house were lined with dry straw, grass huts had been constructed, and the ceiling was covered in cotton tapestries, he said.

When fire officials learned of the decorations, they prevented the party from happening until a fire retardant had been applied to the decorations, Kauffman said.

To demonstrate the severity of the situation, inspectors set up a mock straw hut using the same materials and set it ablaze in a fire-training facility. The hut was quickly consumed by flames, and within 30 seconds the temperature in the room soared past 900 degrees, Kauffman said.

"The possibility of having 100 students die in a party is real," he said.

Concern over fire safety at fraternities has been building since the Rhode Island nightclub fire and, more recently, the fire at Ohio State University, where five students perished, Kauffman said.

Many fraternities spend large amounts of money on replacing appliances and floors, said Tim Knisely, a senior fire and housing inspector for Centre County. He said he understood the importance of making the house look inviting, but fire protection is also critical.

"All these things are important, but if we don't do anything to slow the spread of a fire, all those renovations are pointless," he said.

It would cost about $2 to $3 per square foot to install sprinklers in the houses, Knisely said. Sprinklers could be put in large open spaces, dining rooms, basements, bedrooms and kitchens, Knisely said.

The proposed sprinkler systems' primary purpose would be to prevent loss of life, he said. If a fire got inside the structural walls of the building, even with a sprinkler system present, the building could still burn down.

Although sprinklers do not guarantee saving a building, they can reduce the cost of fire insurance by 30 percent, Knisely said.

Council member Tom Daubert questioned whether the reduction in the price of insurance would make any difference if there were an increase in the price of water damage insurance.

"You're going to save a life is the bottom line," Kniseley said.

Interfraternity Council (IFC) President Steve DiOrio said he did not have a problem with a borough ordinance requiring sprinkler systems in fraternity houses.

However, IFC would like to be part of the discussion about the matter, he said.

"I would like to see them give fraternities the same amount of time as Penn State," DiOrio said.

All Penn State dorm rooms will be equipped with sprinkler systems by 2010.