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Monahans Woman Looks Back on Texas A&M Bonfire Collapse 11/19/09

Jay Hendricks
CBS 7 News
November 19, 2009

Monahans, Texas - The pictures show what was left after the bonfire stack collapsed on the A&M campus in 1999.

Early that morning, the stack fell, killing 12 students and 27 others who had been working on it.

One Monahans girl was there that November day and says it is something she will never forget.

Cari Cutbirth remembers vividly what happened.

“It was the most horrible scene you could ever imagine. Students in groups praying and crying and you know that first day there was just still students that were stuck in the stack. It was very horrible."

The tradition read that students would work together to make the stack each year.

Many times working throughout the night, even watching and guarding it so nothing happened to it. Since that collapse, an off campus event has been held. But ex-students like Cutbirth say it should be brought back, to remember what happened, and to keep tradition alive.

"There is a saying ‘as an Aggie on the inside you can't explain it. As an outsider looking in, you can't understand it.’ I think that's the way we felt that day."

Lanny Hayes was a fellow Monahans classmate that was injured that day. He no longer lives in Monahans, but Cutbirth says she still keeps in touch.

"I called his mom today to see if we could contact him. He did attend the memorial last night and was there with a bunch of the family members. He was with friends…with a bunch of the students who got hurt."

Texas A&M and Texas will renew the rivalry next weekend at College Station.

The bonfire will be held off campus as all Aggies gather to remember what happened 10 years ago, and cheer on the maroon and white.

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