Texas A&M remembers bonfire collapse

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KXAN/AP) - Members of the Texas A&M University community say the bonfire collapse that killed 12 people and injured 27 others a decade ago has brought them closer as a family.

About 4,000 people attended a Tuesday night ceremony commemorating the 10th anniversary of the accident.

The father of one of the victims was among those who spoke at the event, telling the audience to never forget those killed and injured.

At 2:42 a.m. Wednesday, the exact time of the accident, a candlelight vigil was held at the collapse site where a circular memorial now stands.

Chris Breen was the only Austin native among the 12 bonfire victims. His brother Sean is one of six siblings Chris left behind.

“It changes your life forever," said Sean. "It absolutely leaves a void, a hole that you can never fill, especially with people who are so close.”

This Nov. 18, as every Nov. 18, there will be a mass at St. Austin's Catholic Church, where Chris's funeral was held.

“When you die in such a public way, when you die in such a tragic way, it’s a little different than some other people who experience it,” said Sean. “And given what a special guy he was, it’s the least we can do to take a little time and remember appropriately what a great gift he was for the 25 years we had.”

Students and others were building the 59-foot tower of logs in what had been an annual football season tradition when it came crashing down on campus early Nov. 18, 1999.

Bonfires on the eve of A&M's game with archrival University of Texas had been a long-standing tradition at the university.

The annual bonfire, started in 1909, was the ultimate tradition for many at A&M, where tradition is fervently respected. As many as 70,000 people would gather to watch it burn on the 5,200-acre campus 100 miles northwest of Houston.

No bonfires have been held at the university since the collapse.

Many Aggies, including Texas Gov. Rick Perry, would like the tradition to resume. Yet, others question whether such traditions, rooted in the school's military and rural roots, has a place at A&M, which has been working to develop a national reputation as a university that values diversity, research and academic achievement.

An off-campus bonfire not affiliated with A&M has been held each year since 2002.

A commission that investigated the collapse found students had been cutting corners in construction for years and that school officials had failed to adequately supervise them.

No one person or group was blamed for the accident.