Blaze Strikes Lampoon

In a heroic battle, two Lampoon staffers drowned a smoky fire in their building last night.

Flames erupted when a drape wrapped around a light bulb ignited. 'Poonsters had earlier put the drape around a wall-mounted chandelier to keep it away from a window.

David J. Kennedy '93 and William C. Wu '94 quickly doused the drape with water to put out the fire.

By 10:20 p.m., when the Cambridge Fire Department arrived on the scene, the fire was already out. Firefighters put two large fans in the building to blow away the unusual amount of smoke caused by the plastic-lined, crimson drape. 'Poonsters had been entertaining alumni earlier yesterday in the room.

According to Deputy Chief Frank E. Murphy of the Fire Department, fires at the Lampoon are rare.

However, a former 'Poonster alleged that staffers lit a couch on fire and pushed it out a window five years ago.