THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
VOL. 100, NO. 12 (USPS 650-640)
T THE STUDENT NET SAMPER OF THE T UNIVERSITY OF KANSAAS
TUESDAY SEPT. 12, 1989
ADVERTISING; 864-4358
NEWS: 864-4810
9 greek houses violate codes, fire chief says
By Lara Weber and Lisa Moss Kansan staff writers
Eight KU fraternities and one sorority might face city prosecution for not meeting fire code deadlines, Jim McSwain, Lawrence fire chief, told a journalism class yesterday.
Tom Porter, city prosecutor, said he did not know of any formal charges against any of the houses, but McSwain told a Journalism 450 reporting class that the fire department was working with city prosecutors in filing charges against the houses, said Liz Kennedy, a student in the class.
McSwain refused to verify his remarks to the class, which is taught by Jim Flamery, Gannett professional in residence.
Spokesmen for the houses McSwain mentioned said they were unaware of any serious problems with the fire chief.
Liz Kennedy said the houses named by McSwain included Acacia, 1100 Indiana St.; Alpha Epsilon Pi, 1116 Indiana St.; Alpha Tau Omega, 1537 Tennessee St.; Chi Gamma Delta, 1540 Louisiana St.; Chi Kappa Psi, 1602 W, 15th St.; Sigma Kappa, 1825 W. Campus Road; Tau Kappa Epsilon, 1911 Stewart Ave.; and Theta Chi, 1011 Missouri St.
McSain said some of the violations were minor while others were more serious, said David Kennedy, another student in the class.
McSaw told the class that each house could face fines of up to $200 per offense per day since Dec. 31, when the violations were reported, David Kennedy said.
Carol Krekeler, another student in the class, said, "Rich Barr
(Lawrence fire marshal) said, 'Off the cuff, the most serious problem is Phi Kappa Psi.' Barr attended the class with McSwain.
Krekeler said Barr indicated there was a chance of eviction but that it was up to the court to decide.
Kelly Hanson, Phi Kappa Psi president, said he didn't know of any serious violations.
Hanson said he knew the fire chief had recommended repairing some holes in the ceiling and that repairs been completed for the most part.
"It is kind of interesting to know. If they have a problem with us meeting a deadline, they should let us know," Denton said.
"I don't know what the situation is." he said.
Mark Denton, Theta Chi president,
said he was not aware of the situation either. He said the house spent money yearly on fire safety.
David Schiffman, past Acacia president, said the house could not afford to make the corrections the fire chief had recommended last year.
the estimated cost for a sprinkler system is $10,000. The fact is, we just don't have the money," he said.
Acacia has spent approximately $3,000 trying to meet fire safety codes. Schiffman said.
Jeff Pederson, Phi Gamma Delta president, was told by a reporting class member that the house might be cited for fire code violations, so he called McSwain.
"As far as we said, we were done," he said. "Then he (McSwain) gave me a list of three more little things to do."
See CODE, p. 6
It'll be cool this month warmer during weekend
Kansan staff writer
By Travis Butler
Cool is the word for this month's weather, said Steve Schurr, meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Topeka.
"On the average, we should stay cooler than normal," he said. "It looks like we should get a break in the cool weather this weekend with temperatures in the 80s."
Schurr said the sudden drop in temperatures this past weekend was the result of an early season cold front. He said it probably felt much cooler now because the area had been having an unusually hot and humid spell.
"It's not abnormal to be cool at this time of the year." Schurr said.
The cold front also was the cause of the heavy rains this past week, he said.
"The thing that caused the rains was a clash between this cold front and all the heat and humidity." Schurr said. "Whenever it's this humid, especially high in the atmosphere, you're sitting on a powder keg."
"It pulled moisture up through the state," Schurr said. "We got connections with more upper-level moisture than usual, certainly a lot more than we had in the dry spell."
The humidity was brought in by a high-level, high-pressure system.
He expected some showers to continue this week, but at a reduced level.
"It won't be the same type of system after the thunderstorms we've had," Schurr said. "This front has swept most of the moisture away."
"For the rest of September, the temperatures should be cooler than normal with normal precipitation," Schurr said.
A continuing series of frontal systems passing through should keep the air cool, he said.
The normal temperature for Kansas City in September is about 68 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the World Almanac. Normal rainfall is about 3.3 inches.
Garage gains pothole, loses spaces
Jayhawker Towers east parking lot damaged by deteriorating concrete
By Liz Hueben
Kansan staff writer
The number of available parking spaces in the east lot of Jayhawker Towers decreased Wednesday night, the result of a deteriorating section of concrete.
Ken Stoner, director of student housing, said that Western Water-proofing of Kansas City, Mo., would begin assessing the damage and repairing the garage today, weather permitting.
Repairs will be completed in about four to six weeks, provided there are no major delays, said Jim Modig, campus director of facilities planning. He said the repairs would cost about $28,000.
Modig said that eight spaces on the second level and four on the lower level of the garage were closed and that, depending on contractors, there could be as many as 20 to 25 more spaces closed during repair.
A visit to the garage yesterday afternoon revealed 12 spaces closed on the second level and 16 on the lower level of the garage. Dennis Bryant of student housing maintenance confirmed that the 16 lower spaces had been closed.
No additional spaces should be closed during repair, said Terron Jones, associate director of student housing maintenance. But he said he wouldn't know for certain until after Western Waterproofing had seen the facility.
Yesterday, Bryant and a crew from student housing maintenance were building a temporary road to circumvent the work area.
Modig said, "It's a small area that deteriorated to the point where it fell out," he said. "I hesitate to use the word 'failure,' but I guess that's what you could say."
Modig said a structural engineer examined the rest of the facility on Thursday and saw no other areas of concern. He said repairs were needed only on the one parking bay.
Stoner said, "It's like a pothole. It just more disconcerting when it's on the second level of a parking garage because if you look down into it, you see the level 15 feet below you."
He said that the support beams were about one foot apart in the garage and that the hole was not very dangerous. A car couldn't fall through it. Stoner said.
He said there was a similar pothole in the same building two years ago but that the structure was sound.
Donna Hultine, assistant director of parking services, said it seemed more difficult to find an empty space at night at Jayhawker Towers than during the day. She said students were free to park in any of the other nearby lots at night as long as they moved their cars before restrictions began the next day.
Officials estimate it will cost $28,000 to repair damages to the Javhawker Towers parking garage.
Colombia is not a Vietnam,Bush says
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — President Bush, trying to dispel fears about the use of U.S. military forces in the war on drugs, said yesterday there was no contemption of combat roles for U.S. servicemen sent to Latin America.
Bush made his declaration after White House press secretary Marlin Flitzwater complained that many people were trying to portray the use of military forces in Latin America as "another Vietnam situation or the beginning of massive troop build-up."
About 30 U.S. servicemen have arrived in Colombia to help train that nation's military forces in using newly supplied U.S. military equipment for the battle against drugs at the source. Bush said Colombia had received 10 aircraft, five helicopters and an assortment of jeeps, ambulances and armor.
The advisers and equipment are part of a $68 million package that Bush authorized last month. The president announced Sept. 5, that an additional $261 million in security aid would go to Colombia, Peru and Bolivia as part of a five-year, $2 billion program.
Sen. Dennis DeConcini, D-Ariz., said a secret directive signed recently by Bush authorized the military "to be physically involved with units in the field where we have been invited to have our law enforcement people."
While Bush tried to play down the role of U.S. forces in Latin America, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee said the military would provide protection for U.S. drug enforcement agents and other law enforcement officials operating in Colombia, Bolivia and Peru.
George Bush
The enator said such protection was designed to prevent incidents similar to the torture and murder of U.S. drug agent Enrique Camarena, in Guadalajara, Mexico, in February 1985. "We can't
afford another Camarena," DeConcini said.
Fitzwater said he could not comment on the senator's remarks although the spokesman confirmed that Bush had signed a secret directive outlining the goals and limits of military involvement in the drug fight.
U. S. forces in Latin America do have the right to defend themselves, Fitzwater said. He said that was standard policy for U.S. troops anywhere in the world.
"They are there. There is a risk. Colombia is a very dangerous place to be these days," Fitzwater said.
The president, in a speech to Treasury Department officials, used virtually the same language employed by Fitzwater in talking about the role of U.S. servicemen.
"Let me state clearly," Bush said, "none of the Andean nations have asked for U.S. troops. And there is no contemplation of the use of American armed forces in any combat role.
"No U.S. military personnel will accompany host-government forces on actual field operations. Our personnel will provide training, equipment and operational support as we have been asked to do, and I will see that it works just exactly that way."
Fitzwater refused to give details of the secret directive on the drug war.
Asked if the directive left the door open for the use of troops under some conditions, Fitzwater said, "I really can't go beyond that it doesn't contemplate the use of troops. I think the interpretation can be made fairly that it doesn't authorize troops, either."
in another development, Fitzwater refuted a suggestion by drug enforcement administrator John Lawn that the administration was reconsidering a ban on the sale of assault weapons produced in the United States. The Bush administration has curtailed import of such weapons but has not taken any action against those made in this country.
"We aren't aware of any reconsideration," Flitzwater said. "By that I mean there's none in the White House . . . I know the White House position has been given to me by the highest authorities."
During the day, Bush met with John Major, Britain's new foreign minister. Afterward, Majordoll reporters that Britain had placed a team of experts in Bogota for the past few days to assess how London could help the government of President Virgilio Barco fight drugs.
Major said British officials had developed a package of training and technical assistance.
"I'll certainly also deal with protection of personnel." he said.
At the State Department, deputy spokesman Richard Bouchier said that a multi-country drug interdiction program called Operation Snowcap resumed during the weekend in Peru.
First-year medical students Brian Hornung, left, and Joe Fournier study X-rays after a biochemistry class.
Med students adjust to rigor with help from 'big siblings'
At least that is how one of Jim Dickinson's instructors at the College of Health Sciences explained it to him at the beginning of the semester.
For a first-year medical student, school can be a great deal like putting your mouth around the hose on a fire hydrant and turning it on.
By Melanie Matthes
Kansan staff writer
"It's not so much the material but the speed at which you have to learn it," said Dickinson, Lawrence first-year medical student.
Ted Burns, Prairie Village first- year medical student, said that before a student considered going to medical school he should make sure that he was genuinely interested in human biology.
Now that first-year students at the college have three weeks of classes under their belts, some say they aren't an overwhelmed.
During orientation, the Big Sib/ Little Sib program assigned a "big sibling" to new students. Big sibes are second-year students who help the new student become accustomed to medical school.
Una Creditor, associate dean of medicine, said the college's threeday orientation program helped students adjust to life at the Med Center.
The orientation included a tour of the Med Center and the library, lectures on the role of the physician in society and a workshop on Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome and the field of medicine.
"You will find that you really have to dedicate yourself to medicine," he said. "I found that med school was quite a shock. You are no longer an undergrad and can't just slide through. When you study all day long, you realize that that's what you're there for. There's no more pulling on the right."
Brian Pfeiffer, Kansas City, Kan., second-year medical student and coordinator of the Big Sib program, said big sibs helped the new students ease into their surroundings.
"It would be like you had a friend already there to do things for you and show you around," he said. "They give them lessons like old notes, tests and books. There are books that have been passed down for generations."
Commitment and dedication may not be the only keys to success in medical school.
A good memory also can prove valuable when studying for classes such as Medical Biochemistry and Anatomy.
Lectures that students would learn 4,500 new terms, the equivalent of fluency in a foreign language, in their first semester of anatomy.
Burns said that the best part of his
5.
See MED CENTER, p. 6