Thursday, May 06, 2010

Apparent Suicide at Fermilab

A grisly and sad story coming out of Fermilab. Details are still sketchy, but apparently, someone jumped off in the atrium of Wilson Hall at Fermilab in what was suspected to be a suicide. My initial information said that it was a visiting Russian physicist, and a female. I have no verification of this news yet and am waiting for more details.

I've been in the building several times, and I've been at the top as well. I also remember making a sick joke that that, looking down, it is a straight shot down in that atrium for whoever wanted to jump. I don't believe that anyone has done that, till now.

Whatever it is, it is a tragic event and a real shocker.

Zz.

Edit: News reports are now reporting this incident, but with very little details.

2 comments:

Pi-Guy said...

If she jumped from very high up it would've been from one of the stairwells, wouldn't she? Otherwise there aren't any open windows or balconies above the tier where the Art Gallery is, and that's not terribly high up. Is it feasible to jump from the stairway through the opening in the wall?

modestybl said...

She appears to have jumped off the stairwell from the upper floors.... since her body put a dent in the rail around the pendulum, she had a bit of outward momentum. Which meant she jumped rather than fell, and from a height to have landed several feet toward the center of the atrium.

A rather grim first year problem...