4JW 46P
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Monday, October 26, 2009
michigandaily.com
Late night inferno guts
building on South U.
About 600 residents
displaced for hours from
nearby University Towers
By MALLORY JONES
and EMILY ORLEY
Daily StaffReporters
University students and Ann Arbor resi-
dents lined South University Avenue Sat-
urday night just like any other weekend,
eager to get into the restaurants and bars
* along the crowded street.
But the scene drastically changed after a
large fire broke out on the west side of the
street.
The former location of Pinball Pete's, at
1217 S. University Ave., caught fire a little
before 11 p.m. Saturday night, drawing
hundreds of displaced students, firefighters
and police officers to what quickly became
a hectic scene.
Ann Arbor Assistant Fire Chief Ed
Dziubinski told The Michigan Daily that
firefighters first responded to a 911 call
received at 10:51 p.m.
Four fire crews immediately rushed
to the scene. After initial reports were
received from the firefighters on scene,
the chief deputy called in a fifth crew for
backup. Five minutes later, the Pittsfield
Township and Ann Arbor Township fire
departments were asked to send one crew
each to the growing blaze.
"At the height of the fire there were 55
firefighters actively fighting," Dziubinski
said.
The fire became so large that there was
concern it would spread to neighboring
University Towers, an adjacent apartment CHRIS DZOMBAK/Daily
building that houses hundreds of Univer- A raging fire ravaged the former location of Pinball Pete's on South University Avenue late Saturday
sity students. night. The fire caused the structure's roof to cave in. As firefighters worked to quell the flames, a
See FIRE, Page 8A crowd assembled across the street to watch the blaze.
MICHIGAN FOOTBALL
Measuring-stick
gameproves
Blue's mediocrity
R ich Rodriguez was unusually the year last week, though, when he
calm - oddly calm, really - a- and his teammates said eagerly that the
few minutes after his team's Penn State game was the start of their
embarrassing25-point home loss to Penn "second season." Other Wolverines said
State. No sarcastic, biting comments. No Saturday's game would be a step on the
cutting reporters off or snapping back road to.reviving Rose Bowl and Big Ten
at them when they said something he championship hopes. It's funny, then,
didn't want to hear. that the moment this week's 'L' was
He was introspec- . recorded, Graham feels this game all of
tive and reflective, a sudden won't be memorable.
talking about how But for now, let's go along with that
the coaches need to logic. That means that we shouldn't
be patient with his remember Michigan's thriller over Notre
first-year quarter- Dame - where Tate Forcier proved he's
backs and be more quite an impressive freshman quarter-
accountable for the COURTNEY back - and Michigan's comeback vic-
team's mistakes. tory over Indiana. After we forget about
After spitting fire RATKOWIAK those, what's left to remember isn't
when his team lost in pretty.
the game's last min- Michigan had the perfect opportu-
utes to both Michigan State and Iowa, nity to make a statement this weekend
his change in demeanor was more than against a big-time conference opponent.
a little unnerving. David Molk was finally back at center.
But it made sense. After all, in the Wol- Forcier practiced all week for the first
verines' first blowout loss of the season, time since he injured his shoulder exact-
he had already had two quarters' worth ly one month ago. Denard Robinson was
of time to resign himself to the fact his coming off a confidence-building pass
team had been outplayed. With two performance last week. The whole team
close losses to Big Ten teams already in should have felt alittle better about itself
Michigan's past, Saturday's Penn State after last week's 57-point win, even if it
game was truly the measuring stick for was only against a Division 1-AA team.
these Wolverines - and they fell disap- But instead, the Wolverines fumbled
pointingly short. and bumbled their way to a 2008-esque
Senior defensive end Brandon Gra- embarrassment. Turnovers were a mas-
ham didn't quite agree. sive problem in last year's debacle of a
"It's all about how you finish," he laid. season, and they returned in shocking
"People not gonna remember this right force Saturday.
now, they're gonna remember how you Robinson's second-quarter intercep-
finish." tion after the team got two first downs
He wasn't talking about the end of See RATKOWIAK, Page 10A
* CAMPUS SAFETY
Campus gun ban could
be reversed by House bill
COMBATING SWINE FLU
As HiNi vaccine production lags,
officials worry of 'second wave'
DPS chief says bill could
make campus less safe
before House committee
By NICOLE ABER
Daily StaffReporter
Institutions of higher learning might
soon be prohibited from making it illegal
to carry concealed firearms on campus.
Michigan House of Representatives Bill
5474 - introduced by state Rep. Wayne
Schmidt (R-Traverse City) - would super-
sede aUniversity ordinance that makes the
entire campus weapons-free, according to
Diane Brown, Department of Public Safety
spokeswoman.
However, the legislation would not over-
turn a state lawalready in effectwhich pro-
hibits concealed firearms in certain places
like classrooms, dormitories and arenas,
according to Brown.
State Rep. James Bolger (R-Marshall),
who co-introduced the bill, said it aims
to eliminate inconsistencies in concealed
See GUN BAN, Page 9A
Though number of cases
at UHS has decreased,
officials say the virus
may spread once again
By STEPHANIE STEINBERG
Daily StaffReporter
University Health Service has only
received 500 of the 25,000 swine flu vaccine
doses it ordered this summer for University
students and faculty, according to UHS
Medical Director Robert Ernst.
That shortage mirrors similar situations
facing municipality officials and college
administrators across the country, frustrat-
ed with a nationwide lag in the production
and distribution of the H1N1 vaccine.
And officials here say that that shortfall
could strain medical resources on campus
as they expect a "second wave" of swine flu
cases to hit Ann Arbor in the coming weeks.
Despite the fact that the White House
declared the swine flu outbreak a national
emergency onSaturday and that health offi-
cials had previously promised thatlarge vac-
cine quantities would be available as early
as the first week of October, they are now
sayingthe vaccine may not be accessible on
a large scale until as late as December.
"The entire country is seeing a signifi-
cantly lower availability of vaccine than we
had anticipated, and it's a nationwide prob-
lem - not a local problem," Ernst said.
According to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, as of Oct. 21,
more than 11 million doses of the vac-
cine have been shipped - with 308,300
doses sent to clinics, hospitals and health
departments in Michigan.
In total, the federal governmenthas pur-
chased 250 million doses for distribution,
but only 16 million doses have been made
available.
The CDC said quantities of the vaccine
are being shipped as soon as they are avail-
able. UHS receives all vaccines from the
Washtenaw County Health Department.
Ernst said the health department has only
received 30 percent of its expected sup-
ply, which is why the University has so few
available vaccines.
Cindra James, emergency preparedness
coordinator for the Washtenaw County
Health Department, said the county has
received about 1,000 doses of the nasal
spray and 1,000 doses of the injection shot.
While the department has vaccinated
about 500 people so far, James said it is frus-
trated that it doesn't have the resources to
vaccinate more county residents.
"We can't (vaccinate) enough of the pop-
ulation like we wantto," James said.
On campus, the number of swine flu
cases has ebbed and flowed as the semester
has progressed.
Accordingto Ernst, UHS saw the great-
est amount of H1N1 cases during the sec-
ond week of classes - with as many as 50
cases a day.
UHS has seen fewer H1N1 cases in the
last two to three weeks - with an estimated
five to 10 cases showing up each day.
However, Ernst said he expectsthe num-
ber of cases to increase in the coming weeks,
citing 16 cases at UHS lastThursday.
He added that H1N1 has exhibited a pre-
dictable pattern of high and low infection
periods andsaid otherschools and universi-
ties have reported high volumes of cases at
the beginning of classes and then a "cooling
off period" before a second wave hits.
"We're concerned that we may be at the
BY THE NUMBERS
The state of swine flu on campous
Numberof swine flu caseslUHS saw last Thursday
- a harbinger, oneofficial says, for what could be
a second wave of the virus's spread on campus.
beginning of a second wave right now," he
said. "That's also consistent with what the
(Washtenaw County) Health Department
is reporting at elementary and secondary
schools in the community."
Ernst said it's important for people to
not become complacent with flu preven-
tion strategies like washing hands, covering
coughs and keeping hands away from your
mouth, nose and eyes.
"The most important thing is that if you
are sick please limit your contact with other
people," Ernst said, adding that people with
the H1N1 virus should isolate themselves
for at least 24 hours after their fevers break.
For those seeking the vaccine, the health
See SWINE FLU, Page 10A
TOREHAN SHA ARMAN/Daily or more photos of the 77th
Members of the Sigma Alpha tpsilon (purple) and Phi. Kappa Psi PoraMBo lhoto seoft iithour
(blue) fraternities met for the 77th annual Mud wow, game at the websiteatemicigandais.cm or
SAE fraternity Saturday morning. SAE won the game 19-12.
WEATHER HI:58
TOMORROW LO: 49
GOT A NEWS TIP? NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM
Call 734-763-2459 or e-mail DPS issues crime alert about unarmed robbery
news@michigandaily.com and let us know. MICHIGANDAILY.COM/BLOGS/THE WIRE
INDEX NEWS.................................2A ART.S................. A
Vol. CXX, No.33 SUDOKU................3A CLASSIFIEDS...............6A
m©309TheMichiganDaily OPINION.........................4A SPORTS MONDAY ........11