Cal Poly Releases Final Report Into St. Fratty’s Roof Collapse Incident

Cal Poly has released a final report into the St. Fratty’s celebration incident in March, in which at least nine people were hurt when the roof of a garage, located on 348 Hathaway Avenue in SLO, collapsed under the weight of dozens of people.

Over 90 students were identified as having direct knowledge of the events that occurred in the early hours of March 7. The report places the majority of the blame on social media. “Student’s indicated that the marketing for the party was via text and word-of-mouth, and that they couldn’t identify specific individuals or organizations that were hosting/organizing/marketing the event,” states the report.

Many of the attendees drank alcohol before attending the celebration with the goal to get intoxicated, because they had heard no alcohol would be provided, according to the report.

The addition to a preliminary investigation, which found that approximately 65 percent of St. Fratty’s attendees were Cal Poly students, the university decided to hire an external investigator to investigate the incident further.

Students reported that the event being labeled as a “tradition,” had an influence on how the event rose to the level of involving thousands of students. The report states that although all Greek chapters were on “social probation” during that time, and many Greek members participated and disseminated information regarding the event logistics, “there is no evidence that a specific Greek affiliated chapter or Greek leadership played a role in facilitating the event, and the gathering.”

The report also found that a number of simultaneous house parties happening near the 348 Hathaway residence, contributed to the large number of students that congregated at that central location. Residents at the Pink House where the roof collapse occurred, told investigators that they called 911 prior to the collapse because they realized that the gathering had gotten too big and was beyond their control.

On Monday, May 4, 2015, the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities charged students with violating the “Standards for Student Conduct.” The students charged “all agreed to sanctions via a Settlement Agreement,” said the report, adding that certain policies in place prevent the university from providing more specific information that could identify a student who went through a disciplinary process.

The report also includes a suggested plan of action that Cal Poly can implement to discourage gatherings like the ones that led up to the Pink House roof collapse incident. This plan calls for the university to consider, among many options:

Establishing a calendar for “traditional” and “common” student social events, with locations, dates, and who traditionally participates in those events.
Use student judicial code to hold students accountable should a violation occur.
Develop stronger social media campaigns.
Develop more on-campus venues to encourage students to remain on campus during key celebration events.
Partner with students to develop a community service campaign that aims at educating incoming students to the importance of good citizenship.
Collaborate with the City of San Luis Obispo and Student-Community Liaison Committee to address issues.

To read the full report, CLICK HERE.