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Fire survivors recount experiences for high school students

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By Peter Elacqua
Staff Writer

Two survivors of a fire that claimed the lives of three students on the campus of Seton Hall University almost 17 years ago recently told students at Howell High School the decisions they make can have lifelong consequences for other people.

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During a presentation to Howell students on Oct. 19, Alvaro Llanos and Shawn Simons discussed the events of Jan. 19, 2000 inside Boland Hall on the university’s campus in South Orange, Essex County.

Llanos, a native of Paterson, and Simons, a native of Newark, travel across the United States to share their experiences as a cautionary tale to high school and college students.

At 4:30 a.m. on a day that would forever change the lives of hundreds of people, fire alarms went off in Boland Hall.

In some cases, students who were awakened by the fire alarms stayed in their rooms because there had been many instances of fire alarms being pulled as pranks, according to the men.

Simons, who shared a dorm room with Llanos, said that when he opened the door of their room, he was pushed back by a wall of flame and heat.

“It is unfortunate to think that when you hear a fire alarm you look at somebody else and ask if you should leave,” Simons said. “Whenever you hear that fire alarm, you should always evacuate.”

Investigators eventually determined the fire was started as a prank. Three students died and 58 students and firefighters were injured.

Two Seton Hall freshmen were indicted in 2003 and charged with felony murder for setting the fire. Both students pleaded guilty to third degree arson in late 2006 and in early 2007 they were each sentenced to serve five years in a youth correctional facility.

Boland Hall did not have sprinklers and in response to the fire it was mandated that college dormitories in New Jersey must have a sprinkler system.

During their presentation at Howell High School, Llanos and Simons showed a documentary, “After the Fire: A True Story of Heroes and Cowards.” The film discusses their experiences during the fire, their recovery and the aftermath of the deadly incident.

Simons sustained third degree burns on both hands and first and second degree burns on his face and head. He spent two weeks in a medically induced coma.

Llanos was burnt over 56 percent of his body from the waist up and spent nine months in a hospital. Following that, he had five years of physical therapy and other treatment, including more than 30 surgeries. Llanos spent three months in a medically induced coma.

“At 18, you feel indestructible,” Llanos said. “I looked at my arm, saw my skin peeling and thought, ‘I’ll be back in a week.’ I woke up three months later from a coma.”

Simons shared a tip he subsequently learned from a firefighter about how an individual can familiarize himself with the exits in a hotel or dormitory building.

He said the tip is to walk down the hallway to the right and back, then walk down the hallway to the left and back, and note how many doors are between your room and the exit at either end of the hall. In the event of a fire or other emergency, the individual will know the quickest way to an exit.

One student asked what the most difficult part of his recovery was and Simons said it was dealing with identity issues.

It takes a long time to realize that no matter what your physical appearance is, you know who you are on the inside,” Simons said. “You have to love yourself first. If you can instill that in yourself, you can accomplish anything.

“When (the fire department) heard about our program, they said this was something that would hit home with many students who are going to college … and hopefully they can gain some knowledge from our presentation,” he said.

“We hope that what the students got from our presentation is that there are consequences to their actions,” Llanos said. “They don’t realize that sometimes when they make a decision it could affect not only them, but everybody else around them. We hope that when they go off to college they make smart decisions.”

The Howell Fire Bureau joined with the Howell Municipal Alliance to fund the program and bring the two men to the high school.

Following the presentation, Principal Jeremy Braverman told the students, “Today’s activities for the senior class were a departure from your normal routine. We hope you take this information with you as young adults and remember it when making decisions; make good decisions.”

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