"Despite Falls, Few Students Request Guardrails"

Following a string of incidents last semester in which students in the dorms fell out of lofted beds - sometimes sustaining injuries - residence hall officials have taken steps to prevent further accidents.

In a move that has cost them $40,000 to date, University Residence Halls and Apartments has made guardrails available to students at no extra cost in an effort to circumvent any possible problems.

Yet though some UB students want the guardrails, they say they are unaware of the offer.

Paul Ehman, a freshman electrical engineering major, needed six stitches above his eye after he fell from his lofted bed last semester, yet he has not had a guardrail installed.

He said he doesn't know where to go or whom to contact.

"I think all of us should have had them since the beginning - it would have prevented these incidents. It certainly would have prevented my injury," said Ehman. "It's too much work for the student to request having guardrail installed. It's a pain in the a**. They just should have been there."

Four weeks into the spring semester, UB has had no problems with falls from lofted beds, according to Joseph Krakowiak, UHR&A director.

Residence Halls does have a stock of the guardrails on hand and encourages students to request one if desired. Despite the availability, though, Krakowiak said few UB students have taken up the offer this year to attach guardrails to their lofted beds.

"We've made the guardrails available to students, but they just haven't been requesting them," he said. "We don't have a groundswell of interest."

According to Krakowiak, there is a proposal in the works to install guardrails on all lofted furniture next semester. If the proposal is approved, students will need to sign a waiver to have the rails removed.

Shannon Rotolo, a freshman pharmacy major, has had a homemade guardrail built from plywood and nuts and bolts and since she moved into the dorms this past fall.

"My dad was convinced I'd fall out of bed, which I probably would have by now, so he bought the materials from Home Depot and made me a guardrail," Rotolo said.

She found it embarrassing at first but is convinced that she would have been injured by now if it hadn't been installed.

"I don't think it would actually stop you from falling out (of bed), but it serves as a reminder of where the edge is," said Rotolo. "It's a good safety feature for students like me who are prone to tossing and turning. There's a real potential for injury."

Rotolo also said she would not have liked to install the railing offered by the RHA for aesthetic reasons.

Students who loft their beds said they do it to save floor space and to give them greater options for room arrangements. Students may loft units that initially are located on the floor, or take lofts down, according to Dennis Black, vice president for Student Affairs.

Black also noted that no state or federal law mandates the availability or installation of a railing unless it is to be used by "youth" of an unspecified age.

URH&A is in the process of purchasing new furniture for Clement Hall and Richmond Quad, which will be installed this summer, Krakowiak said. All of the new beds will have safety rails attached.

Only one other SUNY school had a single loft-related injury in the fall semester, according to Black.