Years of research went up in smoke at an American lab after a person in charge of cleaning the premises unplugged a freezer.
The device in question contained cell cultures, samples and other research material that had been stored in temperatures near -80 degrees Celsius for many years until September 2020, when a Daigle Cleaning Services employee shut down the circuit breaker linked to the device, the Times Union newspaper reports.
Damage is estimated at over a million dollars.
The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York, where the laboratory is located, has therefore filed a lawsuit against the company responsible for cleaning inside the university.
“It’s people’s behavior and negligence that caused it all,” said university attorney Michael Ginsberg. Unfortunately, they have undone 25 years of research.”
A sign on the unit read in capital letters, “This freezer is being repaired.” Do not move or unplug it. No cleaning is required in this area.”
“A majority of the samples were compromised, destroyed and unrecoverable, nullifying more than 20 years of research,” the lawsuit states.
Daigle Cleaning Services was hired to clean the institute’s numerous premises for US$1.4 million.
The lawsuit seeks damages, the amount of which has not yet been specified.