A janitor who just wanted to have some peace and quiet accidentally wiped out two decades worth of scientific research after turning off a freezer at a laboratory in New York.

The cleaner from Daigle Cleaning Services was working at the Cogswell Building at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York when he got annoyed by the ‘annoying alarms’ coming from the freezer, which contained cell cultures, samples and other elements to analyze photosynthesis and improve solar panel development.

The fed-up custodian then decided to open an electrical box and turned off the circuit breaker, changing the temperature inside the freezer from -112F (-80C) to -25.6F (-32C).

“A majority of specimens were compromised, destroyed and rendered unsalvageable, demolishing more than 20 years of research,” said the lawsuit against the janitor’s third-party contractor.

The lawsuit explained that the freezer alarm had been triggered by a mechanical malfunction that stopped the machine from maintaining a constant temperature.

While waiting for repairs, a letter was left on the freezer explaining the source of the noise and instructions on how to keep it down.

“This freezer is beeping as it is under repairs. Please do not move or unplug it. No cleaning required in this area,” the sign read.

“You can press the alarm/test mute button for five to 10 seconds if you would like to mute the sound,” the letter added.

The janitor reportedly told public safety officers on campus that he thought he was just turning the circuit breaker on.

RPI’s attorney Michael Ginsberg said to the Albany Times Union: “People’s behavior and negligence caused all this. Unfortunately, they wiped out 25 years worth of research.”

He also said that it would cost around $1 million to replicate the work.

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