A janitor working in a laboratory in Troy, New York, inadvertently destroyed decades worth of scientific work when he flipped a switch to silence a beeping alarm but also shut off a storage freezer, according to a report.
The mishap cost the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute lab at least $1 million in damages, according to a lawsuit the university filed against its third-party cleaning service and cited by the Times Union in Albany.
"People's behavior and negligence caused all this," Michael Ginsberg, RPI's attorney, told the Times Union. "Unfortunately, they wiped out 25 years of research."
The freezer held cell cultures, samples, and other elements stored at minus-112 degrees Fahrenheit. But when the worker from Daigle Cleaning Services attempted to silence the incessant beeping by switching off the circuit breaker on Sept. 17, 2020, the temperature rose to minus-25.6 degrees, destroying the material, according to the lawsuit.
The freezer alarm went off because there was a mechanical problem that prevented the unit from maintaining a steady temperature, according to the report. Repairs had been scheduled for Sept. 21, 2020.
According to the Times Union, there was a sign on the door of the lab freezer that provided information about the cause of the alarm and included instructions on how to turn it off.
"No cleaning required in this area," the sign said. "You can press the alarm/test mute button for 5-10 seconds if you would like to mute the sound."
According to a report submitted by the RPI public safety staff, the cleaner mistakenly believed they were switching the breaker on, but had unintentionally switched it off.
"A majority of specimens were compromised, destroyed and rendered unsalvageable, demolishing more than 20 years of research," the lawsuit charged.
According to the Times Union, Ginsberg stated that reproducing the research, which centered on photosynthesis and had the potential to advance solar panel technology, could cost up to $1 million.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.