Student Faints While Stuck in Pfoho Elevator

This past Friday night, an overloaded elevator in Pforzheimer House stalled between floors, trapping 12 students for about one hour.

The Cambridge Fire Department was dispatched to help the trapped students at about 11:00 p.m. By 11:45, the students were released.

The elevator was removed from service by maintenance crews for the rest of the weekend.

The failure caused one injury when Michael A. McConnell Jr. ’03 fainted from exhaustion from the prolonged confinement in the small elevator and was brought to the hospital.

McConnell received appropriate care and was quickly discharged.

“I’m fine. I came home that night,” he said yesterday.

Pforzheimer House Co-Master M. Suzanne McCarthy said that the overcrowding caused the elevator to stall.

“My understanding is that the elevator was seriously overloaded,” she said. She said she was relieved that no one was seriously hurt during the incident.

McCarthy added that the elevator was inspected two weeks ago and at that time inspectors gave it “a clean bill of health.”

The elevator will be examined again later this week she added.

—MICHAEL A. SCHACHTER