At least nine dead in Texas A&M; accident

The Associated Press COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- A towering, 40-foot pyramid of logs erected for Texas A&M;'s traditional football bonfire trembled and then came roaring down early yesterday, crushing at least nine students to death and injuring 28 others. At least four of the injured were in critical condition and two people could be seen trapped in the rubble late yesterday afternoon. Rescuers couldn't tell if they were dead or alive. ''We fear [the death toll] will escalate,'' fire department spokesperson Bart Humphreys said. A wave of grief settled over the campus of 43,000, some 90 miles northwest of Houston. School officials said they believed that all students were accounted for. Rescuers earlier in the day used sensitive sound-detection equipment to listen for moaning or tapping from the enormous pile of collapsed logs, and heard scratching noises that led them to believe there were victims trapped. Top levels of the structure, which is tiered like a wedding cake, fell off to one side. Workers removing the base level yesterday afternoon were certain there were no bodies in that section, Humphreys said. The painstaking work was expected to continue into the night. ''We take it one log at a time,'' said Kem Bennett, director of a state rescue unit. ''They're wired three together in stacks, so we have to cut the wire and move them one at a time. So it's a lengthy process.'' Shocked students gathered at the scene, holding hands and praying while the rescue went on. Workers tapped on logs and ordered spectators to be still so they could hear if anyone was still alive. Texas A&M; sophomore Diana Estrada said she was about 200 yards away from the stack when it fell. ''It just toppled over and the wires snapped and the lights started sparking and going on and off,'' she said. ''We ran over there as fast as we could and we could see legs sticking out and hear people screaming.'' Officials had no explanation for the collapse and said engineers would examine the site. Sixty to 70 students were on top of the logs trying to build the stack when it suddenly gave way, university officials said. ''I was dazed. I was kind of thrown against the wall,'' sophomore Caleb Hill said. ''For a while, I could see a few people trying to jump off the stack, get out from on top of it, out from underneath it.'' Sophomore Michael Guerra, who was helping build the bonfire, had left for a few minutes and returned moments after the collapse. ''People were running around calling people's names and crying,'' Guerra said. ''Other people were just like zombies. They couldn't believe what had happened.'' Faculty adviser Rusty Thompson said students told him there was no hint of a problem until there was ''noise and chaos.'' ''There was just a sudden movement,'' he said. ''Five to seven seconds and it was on the ground.'' ''I've never seen anything like this,'' said student Patrick Freshwater, who was helping clear away the logs. ''It's something you don't ever want to feel. I went to my class and there was nobody there. The teacher wasn't even there, because no one can go to class when this is going on.'' The bonfire, meant to get students fired up for the football game against archrival Texas, is a beloved tradition at Texas A&M; and attracts tens of thousands of spectators.