Cause of Fire That Killed Two UA Students Released
A preliminary finding into the cause of the fire that killed two University of Alabama fraternity brothers in Conecuh County early last week has been released by the Alabama Fire Marshal’s Office.
19-year-old James “Walter” Hensley II and 21-year-old Mark “McNeil” Mostellar, both from Mobile, died in a structure fire at a hunting camp near Evergreen. The fire marshal's initial report states the blaze appears to have been accidental and was caused by discarded fireworks. The reports says the fireworks, “retained enough heat to ignite combustible materials on the ATV they were carried on.”
Two other friends escaped the fire but Hensley and Mostellar were reportedly trapped in a structure about 1:30am on July 1st and were not able to escape. The two friends were transported to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Hensley and Mostellar were both business majors at UA and were members of Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity.
The investigation will continue and a final report will be issued by the fire marshal's office at a later date.
The two friends were standout athletes at two different high schools in the Mobile area. Hensley was a graduate of St. Paul’s Episcopal School. Mostellar was a graduate of UMS-Wright Preparatory School.
More From Tuscaloosa Thread
