Boston Fire Department officials rescued 12 people from an elevator in 575 Commonwealth Ave. on Sunday at 8 p.m., BUPD officials said.
The elevator was stuck around the 4th floor for about 25 minutes, students say. Eleven students and one BU employee were in the elevator until firefighters fixed it. After the people were released, Residence Life officials posted a sign in front of the elevators on each floor saying that “no more than six people” could ride at a time.
BUPD officer Alex Ayochok said he often receives calls like the one at 595 Comm. Ave, known as “HoJo,” due to overcrowding in elevators.
“We get them quite a few times a year about elevators. Everyone likes to crowd in the elevator,” Ayochok said.
The elevator, currently the only one of the building’s two elevators that works, has a maximum occupancy of eight people.
Megan Richmond, a sophomore in Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, said the problem with the elevators is twofold.
“The elevators here are unreliable as it is, and there’s only one in service. It is always slow to open,” she said. “It probably doesn’t help that there were 12 people on the elevator.”
Richmond said the rule is not followed, in part due to the lack of elevators. The last person to board the elevator, she said, was a maintenance worker.
Alex Valdovinos, a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences, said HoJo often has people stuck in elevators, mainly because students do not adhere to the occupancy limits.
“It was 11 people in an elevator when it’s supposed to be eight,” Valdovinos said. “The reason that [the elevator] doesn’t work is because people keep breaking that rule.”
Valdovinos also said he does think that the elevators are old and that he doubts that they have been renovated.
The elevator did seem to have its license renewed, however, as the license does not expire until on July 19, 2012, according to the certificate posted inside the elevator wall.
CAS sophomore Shaifali Verma said she usually does not see a lot of people in the elevator, but that the main problem in HoJo is the lack of elevator service.
“I think there were a lot of people in one of them because there’s only one that’s working. This is the third time one of our elevators stopped working. This one’s known as the slowest,” she said.
While she would occasionally take the time to wait for the elevator, Richmond said that Sunday night’s ride would be her last. She would rather walk up to the fourth floor, than get stuck in there again, she said.
“I won’t be taking the elevator after this,” Richmond said.
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Oh, my god…don’t people have any sense?? They should know that the rules about having no more than 8 people at a time tops occupy the elevator at one time! One of these days, the elevator might get stuck for afew days, somebody might die of an asthma attack, heart attack, epileptic seizure or stroke, as a result of being stuck in the elevator without access to their meds or the ability for someone to call an ambulance, and then it’ll be too late!