Tragic graduation day: Weekend marks 25 years since UNC fraternity fire killed 5 students
Posted May 16, 2021
This weekend's graduation day marks 25 years since a tragic fire in a UNC fraternity house killed five students. The painful date is etched in local memory: May 12, 1996. It was graduation day – and Mother's Day. A smoldering cigarette sent the Phi Gamma Delta house up in flames. “It rocked my soul,” said Bonnie Woodruff, who lost her son, Ben.
(WRAL.com)
Related: Campus Connections
UNC ranked No. 55 among universities across the worldThe University of North Carolina is the 55th best school in the world, according to U.S. News. Carolina’s best subject areas, according to the rankings,...
Tue Jun 23, 2026Student-owned coffee shop The Grounds opens on Franklin Street
The best word to describe the past month of UNC students Emily Lutgring and Allison Travis' lives is synchronicity. In the fall, both Lutgring, 20,...
Sat Jun 20, 2026
Carolina Cupboard serves as a food and supply pantry for UNC students, staff and community
Located in the Student and Academic Services Building North, Carolina Cupboard is UNC's food pantry that offers food, hygiene products and general supplies to both...
Fri Jun 19, 2026
America’s first public university is also its flagship
The 250-year history of the United States runs parallel to the history of UNC. In the same year the nation declared independence, North Carolina’s first...
Thu Jun 18, 2026
