An annoyed custodial worker is accused of damaging more than 25 years of research in a private New York university’s laboratory by turning off a super-cold freezer in an attempt to silence a beeping alarm in September 2020.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) filed a lawsuit against Daigle Cleaning Services, the firm responsible for cleaning RPI facilities, the Times Union reported. The laboratory claims the error cost it nearly one million dollars in damages. The research focused on photosynthesis and had the potential to make valuable contributions to the development of solar panels.

The outlet said the lawsuit, filed in the Rensselaer County Clerk’s Office, claims that the freezer inside the Cogswell Building, which houses the lab of Professor K.V. Lakshmi, an award-winning researcher in chemistry and chemical biology, contained valuable “cell cultures, samples, and research elements” that were stored at an ultra-low temperature of minus 112 degrees Fahrenheit. An alarm would sound when the freezer’s temperature swung above minus 108.4 degrees Fahrenheit or below minus 115.6 degrees Fahrenheit. Deviations from these temperature ranges could cause significant damage or destruction of the samples.

In the fall 2020 semester, Daigle had a $1,427 million contract to clean RPI facilities

On September 14, 2020, the freezer alarm activated as the temperature rose to minus 108.4 degrees Fahrenheit. Professor Lakshmi and her team promptly responded and assessed that the cell cultures, samples, and research were not being harmed at that time. However, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, emergency repairs from the freezer manufacturer were delayed until September 21, 2020. Throughout this period, an alarm beep continued to sound.

However, a sign was posted on the laboratory door which read:

“THIS FREEZER IS BEEPING AS IT IS UNDER REPAIR. PLEASE DO NOT MOVE OR UNPLUG IT. NO CLEANING REQUIRED IN THIS AREA. YOU CAN PRESS THE ALARM/TEST MUTE BUTTON FOR 5-10 SECONDS IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MUTE THE SOUND.

In spite of this sign, on September 17, 2020, a cleaner claimed to have gone to the open electrical box, believing that he was turning the electrical breakers on when, in fact, he was turning them off, according to a report filed by the RPI public safety staff. The janitor’s actions caused the freezer to rise to minus 25.6 degree Fahrenheit.

“People’s behavior and negligence caused all this,” Michael Ginsberg, RPI’s attorney, said “Unfortunately, they wiped out 25 years of research.”

The next day, graduate research workers found the majority of specimens were compromised.