Jun 9, 2009 9:08 am US/Central
Suburban Teen Killed In Elevator Accident In Iowa
Robert A. Pawlak Fell Down Elevator Shaft When Door Collapsed
AMES, Iowa (Sun-Times Media Wire) ―
A freak accident took the life of a 19-year-old Downers Grove man over the weekend when he plunged down an elevator shaft in an apartment building near Iowa State University, police said.
Robert A. Pawlak, a 2008 graduate of Hinsdale South High, was next to an elevator on the seventh floor of the Legacy Apartments when a friend pushed him, said Ames, Iowa, Police Cmdr. Mike Brennan.
Pawlak hit the elevator door, the door collapsed inward and he fell down the shaft.
"Mr. Pawlak's body struck the elevator door, which then collapsed. Mr. Pawlak then fell down the elevator shaft,'' Brennan said.
The accident was the result of horseplay, but there was no foul play, he said.
Pawlak was about 6 feet 3 and 254 pounds. Regardless, "elevator doors shouldn't do that," Brennan said.
"I don't know what to say: The doors shouldn't open, even if someone falls against them," Pawlak's father, Ronald Pawlak, told the Des Moines Register. "Something went wrong somewhere."
Pawlak and his friend had been at a gathering at Legacy Apartments, which provides off-campus housing for many students from Iowa State, Brennan said.
Police cited Pawlak's friend for public intoxication, Brennan said. Witnesses at the gathering said Pawlak "had quite a bit to drink," Brennan said. Police are awaiting toxicology reports.
Pawlak and the man were longtime friends, compounding the tragedy, Brennan said.
The elevator -- which is now boarded up -- was inspected Dec. 30. At that time it needed a light and working phone. The problems were corrected and it was considered safe, said Katie Hommer of the Iowa agency that oversees elevators.
The building is owned by Campus Investors LLC of Champaign, a spokesman said. The elevator was in compliance with safety rules, she said.
Pawlak, of the 300 block of Oldfield Road in Downers Grove, was a well-liked student at Hinsdale South, a school official said. Friends said he was known for his good nature and bear hugs, according to postings on Facebook.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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