Locked in a glass fishbowl
Yesterday, I was locked in a lobby for 20 minutes.
I was leaving the University to head home. I descended a staircase and exited into a lobby in the front of the building. The only problem was that they sometimes close this lobby - it had been open less than two hours before, and it was still daylight, so I tried to leave at this entrance.
I knew something was wrong when I exited the staircase on the 1st floor. The alarms started up after a few steps - there must have been motion sensors. I realized the lobby was closed, and tried to go back upstairs. But the staircase door had closed, and latched. This is a security feature, so that trespassers can't come in the building and disappear into the staircases too fast.
I couldn't go back up the staircase, so I tried other stairs and doors. All were locked, most had chains wrapped around them. People were walking around outside, hearing the alarms and watching me. So I sat down to wait, and called El to tell her I was locked in a glass-enclosed lobby, and that I might be a little late getting home.
After 10 minutes, I realized the security guards weren't going to investigate. I hunted around for an internal University phone, and found one that worked on the third try. I reached the main guard desk, and asked them to please let me out. They showed up about 10 minutes later.
I was leaving the University to head home. I descended a staircase and exited into a lobby in the front of the building. The only problem was that they sometimes close this lobby - it had been open less than two hours before, and it was still daylight, so I tried to leave at this entrance.
I knew something was wrong when I exited the staircase on the 1st floor. The alarms started up after a few steps - there must have been motion sensors. I realized the lobby was closed, and tried to go back upstairs. But the staircase door had closed, and latched. This is a security feature, so that trespassers can't come in the building and disappear into the staircases too fast.
I couldn't go back up the staircase, so I tried other stairs and doors. All were locked, most had chains wrapped around them. People were walking around outside, hearing the alarms and watching me. So I sat down to wait, and called El to tell her I was locked in a glass-enclosed lobby, and that I might be a little late getting home.
After 10 minutes, I realized the security guards weren't going to investigate. I hunted around for an internal University phone, and found one that worked on the third try. I reached the main guard desk, and asked them to please let me out. They showed up about 10 minutes later.