SARA PANA
Special to the Universe
Getting stuck in an elevator for 30 minutes was not part of the intended Daily Universe newsroom tour for Boy Scout Troop 997 from Price.
Members of the troop were on campus Saturday, for the Boy Scouts Powwow.
Sean Watkins, Blake Wilde, Jeff Anderson, Bryant Bunnel and Matt King were stuck in an elevator on the fifth floor of the Wilkinson Center at 11:46 a.m. while returning from their tour.
The elevator stuck when they jumped up and its doors failed to close, said Quinn Anderson, a member of the troop who saw it happen.
When asked about their scouting skills in this situation, one of them said, 'Don't panic, stay calm and use your oxygen wisely.'
Shea Cutler, one of the journalism merit badge teachers, reported the problem to maintenance.
They thought the phone was locked, but it was an intercom-style phone where a button is pushed. Most elevators on campus have a handset-style phone and when picked up it rings to the electric shop, said Stacy Lewis, the administrative assistant at the electric shop.
The scouts were rescued at 12:13 p.m. by Keith Robertson, an elevator mechanic from the electric shop. Robertson pushed in the doors, so they could close, and unjammed the elevator.
'Construction dust got on the safety-edge, the electric eye that prevents the door from closing when you walk in, and caused a hung door lock,' Robertson said.