COLUMBUS — Columbus police are investigating a viral video showing two people on fire at an Ohio State University fraternity party as a possible hazing incident, according to Columbus police records obtained by The Columbus Dispatch on November 10.
The charges under investigation are for hazing, according to the Columbus police report filed on November 9, The Dispatch reported. The report also notes that Ohio State’s Division of Public Safety is investigating the incident for hazing, according to The Dispatch’s reporting of the records.
Ohio State has placed the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity on interim suspension pending a full investigation, Ohio State spokesperson Ben Johnson said in a statement to The Columbus Dispatch. The university said it referred the incident to Columbus police and Ohio State University police, according to The Dispatch.
Records show police were informed that two students had participated in a dangerous activity that resulted in second- and third-degree burns, The Dispatch reported. A Columbus Division of Fire spokesperson told The Columbus Dispatch the victims were taken to a local hospital in a private vehicle, were burned but in stable condition, and remained in the hospital as of November 9.
The investigation began with a call on the evening of November 8, when a person identifying as an Ohio State student called Columbus police to report video evidence of a possible hazing incident sent to a chat, according to an audio recording of the call reported by The Dispatch. The caller told police, in the recording reported by The Columbus Dispatch, that pledges had been set on fire while others stood around watching.
Police responded to the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house on Indianola Avenue on November 8 at about 9:30 p.m., and the police report states that officers took a statement from the fraternity’s president, according to the records reported by The Dispatch. The report lists both victims’ injuries as moderate and says they were treated, with the victims’ personal information redacted, The Dispatch reported.
Columbus police told The Columbus Dispatch they are investigating alongside the Columbus Division of Fire’s arson investigation team. No charges had been announced as of November 10, and the university has not said whether the people in the video are members of the fraternity.
The video itself, described in detail by The Columbus Dispatch, begins with a man in gray sweatpants and a hoodie already on fire while another person tries to use a fire extinguisher on him. The man gets up and lunges at another man in a similar outfit, catching him on fire as well, while people nearby cheer and shout, according to The Dispatch’s description. Bystanders eventually try to smother the flames and tell the victims to drop and roll, The Dispatch reported. A second video from another angle is also circulating, according to The Dispatch.
The case lands under a state law written for exactly this kind of allegation. In 2021, Ohio passed Collin’s Law, which increased the legal penalties for hazing in Ohio and made Ohio the 11th state to make hazing a felony, according to The Columbus Dispatch. The law is named for Collin Wiant, an 18-year-old freshman who died at Ohio University during a hazing ritual in 2018, The Dispatch reported.
Hazing investigations at Ohio State move on two tracks at once: the criminal track now running through Columbus police and the fire division’s arson team, and the university’s own student-conduct track, which is why the fraternity’s interim suspension can remain in place while police work continues, regardless of how long the criminal investigation takes. Interim suspension means the chapter cannot operate normally while the university investigates.
The incident is the second major Ohio State story in Columbus this week — the university also announced a five-year partnership with Microsoft at its Wexner Medical Center, as Ohio State and Microsoft announced a five-year AI partnership — but this one will follow the university for far longer than a news cycle, because burn injuries, a viral video and a felony hazing law leave little room for the story to fade quietly.
What we know — and what we’re still waiting on
What we know: Columbus police are investigating the November 7 incident as hazing under a report filed November 9, two people suffered second- and third-degree burns and were in stable condition in a hospital as of November 9, and Sigma Alpha Epsilon is on interim suspension, according to Columbus police records and Ohio State statements reported by The Columbus Dispatch. What we’re still waiting on: whether criminal charges are filed, the victims’ current conditions, and the outcome of Ohio State’s own investigation. Police did not receive any 911 calls at the time of the November 7 incident itself, according to the records reported by The Dispatch — the report came a day later, from the video.
What happens next is the investigation itself: Columbus police and the fire division’s arson investigators continue their work, Ohio State completes its review of the fraternity, and any charging decision will come through Franklin County prosecutors. NewsForce247 will update this story as officials release findings.
Photo: Michael Barera, CC BY-SA