MSU Football Victory Leads to Over 50 Nuisance Fires, Straining East Lansing Emergency Services
Following Michigan State University's upset football victory over the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, the East Lansing Fire Department (ELFD) responded to 54 nuisance fires last weekend. This surge in incidents significantly strained emergency services, with Ingham County’s 911 Central Dispatch experiencing a substantial backlog. ELFD Chief John Newman reported that the department handled 88 calls within a 24-hour period on the Saturday of the game. Public safety leaders, including Chief Newman, emphasized that these preventable, intentionally set fires put every resident in the county at risk by diverting resources from life-threatening emergencies. The East Lansing Police Department is actively collecting digital evidence, such as social media photos and videos, to identify individuals involved in these fires, a decades-long tradition after MSU athletic events.
