Harvard Explained

Why is there an “emergency exit” door in Lamont?

One of the six doors to Lamont is labeled “Emergency Exit” on the inside. This door, which does not trigger an alarm, is not reserved for any special daytime emergencies, but rather for use in the event that a student hidden in a fifth-floor reading room does not make it out before Lamont shuts down at 12:45 a.m. “When we close the library, all of the doors except that one lock from the inside also,” explains Joe Rindfleisch, access services assistant and evening supervisor at Lamont. “It’s just a safety precaution; let’s say somebody’s stuck in the library after it closes—they have a way out. Of course, they’ll trip the alarm system.” The whole area in between the inner and outer glass doors, he explains, is alarmed by motion sensors.

Has anyone really ever been locked inside? Before the library closes, staff members ring piercing bells warning students of their imminent expulsion for the evening. “Those horrific bells could wake up anyone,” says Lamont employee Natalie S. Ignacio ’03. “I would think that we would come across anyone who managed to sleep through them and wake them up while we close down the library.”

So as reading period approaches and the temptation to spurn a snuggly dormitory bed for a wooden chair and cubicle overwhelms the rational need for a good night’s sleep, fear not. Even the soundest sleeper, undisturbed by the closing bells and friendly nudges, can sneak out of an unlocked door remaining anonymous—provided you can get away before the cops responding to the alarms get to Lamont.