George Jenkins, a custodian at CSU East Bay for the past five years came to work at the crack of dawn, not aware of what would come next.

Jenkins, commonly referred to as Roc, started his day no differently than any other. On June 4, around 5:30 a.m., the automatic doors of Meiklejohn opened.

He needed his keys from the fourth floor, so humming the tune from his favorite blues song; he pushed the up button from the elevator located on the first floor of Meiklejohn. It went up and got stuck.

After getting out of the elevator Roc would find out that he was stuck in between the third and fourth floor for two hours.

According to ADA Accessibility Guidelines for Buildings and Facilities, this is a violation.  The ADA Title III Technical Assistance Manual states that even with “mechanical failures in equipment such as elevators or automatic doors” are violating accessibility codes.

“If repairs are not made promptly or if improper or inadequate maintenance causes repeated and persistent failures,” states the manual. “Inoperable or ‘out of service’ equipment does not meet the requirements for providing access to a place of public accommodation.”

Without an elevator, Meiklejohn is not accessible from the second floor to the fourth floor.

Derrick Ross, a social work graduate student at CSUEB and hemiplegic, which is paralysis of the arms and legs, said. The school has changed his classes to another building to accommodate him, but that the university needs to stop making minor repairs and needs to address this as a major issue. “It disenfranchises people with disabilities,” Ross said.

The elevator in Meiklejohn Hall has had repeated problems for the past three months. This is the longest it has been out said Roc. The elevator is still out of service with no timeline to when it will get fixed.

“I have seen other people get caught on elevators but I never imagined myself to be one of those people,” said Roc.

Roc explains, on May 29 an instructor, who wished to remain anonymous, also became stuck in the mid-morning for roughly 20 minutes. She explains an email went out the night before and that she was under the impression they had kept old maintenance signs up. He said professors have been talking about never using the elevator again.

While being trapped in the elevator, Roc attempted to open the door, pushed all the buttons. Yet, nothing worked.

Roc, a carefree and cheerful man, who is very popular with students and faculty in Meiklejohn Hall, said he momentarily became confused. As a Vietnam Vet, he willed himself to be calm.

Then he picked up the emergency phone and connected to the University Police Department. He notified them that he had been stuck on the elevator. Unfortunately, there were no facilities personal on campus until 6 a.m. to help the stranded custodian.

“The woman on the other end said they were notifying the facility and were sending an officer over to MJ,” said Roc.

An officer showed up in about 10 minutes and started talking to Roc through the door. “The officer kept asking me ‘What floor are you on?’ ‘Where are you?’ Well I’m stuck in the elevator, where am I gonna go?” replied Roc.

Stacy Miller, Roc’s co-worker, called Dave Miller the facilities trades manager, who contacted an elevator company located in San Jose some 40 miles south of CSUEB.

Meanwhile, still being stuck in the elevator for about an hour, Roc continued his sarcastic behavior. He told the officer he needed a snack bar, music, ashtray and a restroom in the elevator.

As officers and staff students and faculty talked to Roc through the elevator doors, he kept trying to open the door.

“I was switching every button in that elevator on and off,” said Roc.

He told the officer “Maybe I should do a Mission Impossible and come through the top of the elevator into the shaft.” The officer replied “oh no don’t do that”.

After being trapped for about an hour and 15 minutes, his next suggestion was to hit the fire alarm so the fire department could come get him out. By  7:30 a.m. the Ascent Service elevator technician opened the door. Roc was finally free of the elevator.

“I was able to escape,” said Roc. “Shaken but not broken.”

After talking to the technician, Roc found out that the company was not notified until an hour after he made the emergency call.

Although Roc is not claiming any adverse side effects, he suggests the elevator should be repaired immediately. Also if a situation such as this does occur, the response time should be a lot faster than an hour.

“I was able to deal with it, but maybe if it were someone else they would not have been able to handle such a situation for an extended period of time,” he said.

Others have expressed concerns regarding graduation. Graduating senior from the sociology department, Curtis Cargo said an email was sent out inviting parents back to Meiklejohn after commencement. He worries his mother will have troubles making it up the stairs and was unsure of where the graduation party will be held.