A janitor allegedly destroyed 25 years of research and $1 million in damages when he flipped a switch at a research lab in Troy, New York, in September 2020, according to a report.
Bothered by incessant beeping, the janitor allegedly flipped a switch in a Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute lab to silence the sound, according to a lawsuit filed by the university, The Times Union reported. However, the same switch shut off a storage freezer containing decades of scientific work, destroying the materials inside, the outlet reported.
Annoyed janitor turns off super-cold freezer, destroying decades of scientific work and causing at least $1M in damages: lawsuit https://t.co/eXXV8R8br8 via @nypost
— Sharon Schlosser (@SGPS1012) June 26, 2023
“People’s behavior and negligence caused all of this,” Michael Ginsberg, an attorney for the university’s laboratory, told The Times Union. “Unfortunately, they wiped out 25 years of research.”
The storage freezer contained cell cultures, samples and other research elements stored at minus-112 Fahrenheit until the janitor of Daigle Cleaning Services allegedly damaged the material. Ginsberg told The Times Union that recreating the research on photosynthesis would cost $1 million. (RELATED: Biden Bragged About Building A Solar Farm In Africa. Taxpayers Are Fronting $900 Million For It)
Alarms were set to sound if the freezer’s temperature exited a range of minus-115.6 degrees to minus-108 degrees Fahrenheit. The temperature reached minus-108.4 degrees on Sept. 14, 2020, causing the beeping the janitor heard.
Professor K.V. Lakshmi, the award-winning chemistry and chemical biology professor whose lab housed the materials, “determined that the cell cultures, samples and research were not being harmed,” according to the lawsuit.
Emergency repairs were requested when Lakshmi contacted the freezer’s manufacturer, but the company could not service the appliance until Sept. 21, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to The Times Union. The freezer’s beeping persisted during this time, but a sign on the door reportedly said, “This freezer is beeping as it is under repair. Please do not move or unplug it. No cleaning required in this area. You can press the alarm/test mute button 5-10 seconds if you would like to mute the sound.”
The janitor did not heed the sign’s warning, allegedly turning off the circuit breaker that cut the freezer’s electricity.
Lakshmi’s staff discovered higher temperature the next day, attempting and failing to save the unsalvageable research specimens, according to The Times Union.
An investigation determined that the Daigle cleaner made an error in reading the electrical box, but he insisted he had not done anything wrong and was trying to assist, The Times Union reported.
Daigle Cleaning Services could not be reached for comment.