The house of Eastern track and cross country team members caught fire Wednesday afternoon, leaving behind severe damage and five Eastern athletes without a home.

The fire started in the far west room of the house at 1515 Third St., but the cause remains under investigation, said Charleston Fire Chief Darrell Nees.

“The house received extensive damage, and, to me, it looks like it will be a complete loss,” Nees said. “The entire house received quite a bit of both heat and smoke damage.”

Seniors Kevin Atkins, Aaron Grobengieser and Eric Buhot and juniors Nathan Pepper and Daniel Strackeljahn live in the “Arby’s house,” located near the Arby’s on Lincoln Avenue. The house has been the track and cross country house for three years, and Atkins was a founding member.

Since Carmen Hall’s fire, university officials have developed an emergency alternative plan, and Eastern President Lou Hencken said these men will be taken care of.

“There’s no way to turn this into a positive situation,” Hencken said, “but we’re going to do our best to make it as least stressful as we can.”

Through the emergency plan the men will receive gift certificates from Wal-Mart and emergency supplies and clothing from the Red Cross.

Also there to assist was Mark Hudson, director of housing and dining.

“Obviously we have enough housing arrangements for them, and we are planning to give them dining dollars as well,” Hudson said. “I gave them our contact information and told them if they need to, call us.”

Through the sweat, tears and high emotion, however, the house mates realized the outcome could have been worse.

“The fire could’ve started while we were in it,” Pepper said. “I’m just glad we were all out and OK.”

The majority of the residents left for practice at 3:05 p.m., only 10 minutes before the fire ignited and the fire department arrived.

“I just couldn’t believe it,” Atkins said. “I was in class when it started, and a friend from work called and left me a message.”

When the teammates first heard of their loss, they were stretching by the campus pond before a day’s run.

“One of the girls came and told us the Arby’s house was on fire,” Strackeljahn said. “None of us really believed her, but when our coach saw the smoke, we sprinted home.”

The support they have received has helped the five residents minimize their feelings of loss.

“The Red Cross and our teammates have been awesome,” Grobengieser said. “This just shows how much our team is a family; they’re looking out for us, patting us on the back and making sure we’re doing all right.”

To see more photos from the fire, click function openSlideShow1074(){window.open(slideshowpath + 1074,’selectUser’,config=’scrollbars=No,resizable=Yes’);}here (Slideshow will pop up in a new window)