Three Kennesaw State professors and one prospective professor were trapped for 30 minutes in an elevator Tuesday, March 6, in the Social Sciences building.
Dr. Josh Azriel, interim associate director of graduate studies for the School of Communication and Media and a professor of communication, said he and two other professors, Kristen Heflin and Dr. Farooq Kperogi, were taking a candidate professor to an interview when, between the fourth and fifth floors, the passengers felt a “jostle,” and the elevator stopped. Soon after, the professors used the call button to ask for assistance.
“They told us to try pressing all the buttons to get the elevator unstuck,” Azriel said.
While pressing the buttons did not free the elevator, Azriel said that the doors opened slightly, allowing the passengers to see where they were. Azriel also said he could see through a small gap into the fifth floor, indicating that the elevator had stopped a good distance from their destination.
Azriel said that a small crowd formed around the elevator and campus police showed up to assess the situation. Soon thereafter, the fire department was also called, and they used a ladder to rescue the passengers.
“We were all trying to make light of it,” Azriel said. “We kept it cool, nobody panicked. I felt that campus security and the fire department did a great job.”
Azriel said that after his ordeal, an “out of order” sign was placed on the middle elevator. Azriel said the need for constant maintenance could be due to the high number of students that use the elevators each day.
