Cadets throw their caps at the end of the West Point graduation ceremony in Michie Stadium at the United States Military Academy on May 28, 2014. West Point leaders announced Wednesday they have banned pillow fights after a bloody pillow melee in August left some 30 freshman cadets injured. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo

WEST POINT, N.Y., Nov. 26 (UPI) -- United States Military Academy leaders announced pillow fights have been banned in response to the bloody pillow melee that left some 30 freshman cadets injured at West Point in August.

The annual pillow fight has long been a tradition at the school as a way for "plebes," or first-year students, to bond after intense summer training. But three months ago, the tradition went awry after several put hard objects, including helmets, into pillowcases for the fight. At least 24 people were left with concussions.. One person was knocked unconscious.


Academy Superintendent Lt. Gen. Robert Caslen said the incident showed that such "unprofessional spirit events" have "no place in the future of the academy or in the development of the Army's next generation of leaders."

Officials said the pillow fight was not an officially sanctioned event, nor was it based on any longstanding tradition.

"Many injuries were the result of cadets having been hit by elbows or other body parts during the scuffle of the pillow fight or from simply falling or being knocked to the ground," the report said.