Seventy years ago this week, a fire raged at the Pratt Grandstand for nearly two hours due to a "defective furnace flue," according to The Student. The fire occurred shortly after the cross-country team had showered and the furnace had been "banked."

This fire was the third at Pratt Field in several years, though the causes of the previous two were unknown. This was the third fire in the bleachers at Pratt field in the course of a few years. The causes of the first and second fires were unknown. The damage this time was fairly extensive; the west tower of the grandstand suffered considerably.

Firemen went to great lengths to stop the fire from spreading to other areas of the Fairest College: "Firemen had to hack their way through the ceiling of the grandstand in order to reach the blaze," reported The Student.

One fireman was injured by a fire hose while trying to put out the fire. "Fireman Earl Flebert sustained slight injuries to his ankles in manning the double lines of hose which were called into service," according to The Student.