Distressing events and incidents are an inescapable fact of life for corporations and organizations, and cover-ups are a frequent outcome of these types of situations. Like any other corporation, RPI has had its fair share of these incidents. The most recent of these came just a few weeks ago, and the cover-up is still in progress.
By now, most students have probably heard about the fire in Colonie A that caused damage to three floors of the building and ruined a great deal of personal property. We understand why parts of this incident were covered up, such as the insufficient training of some RPI employees in how to deal with this type of emergency. And given this understanding, perhaps we can forgive some parts of the cover-up. But there is at least one part that cannot be forgiven, and that is why the editorial board of The Poly would like to use this space to commend senior Jameson Henshaw for the heroic act of pulling a sleeping student from a burning apartment.
As Battalion Executive Officer, Henshaw is second in command of the RPI Naval ROTC, and admirably lived up to his duty to, in the words of the Army Ranger motto, “never leave a man behind.” Henshaw, while passing by the room, saw smoke pouring out from under the door and proceeded to kick down the door to ensure that whomever was inside got out safely. The administration has been quick to point out that it is because of the sprinklers that we did not have a fatality, but has left out the large part played by Henshaw.
It seems that members of the administration misled both the student body and The Poly on this particular part of the incident in an attempt to prevent other students from thinking that they should act similarly. While it is important to ensure that students caught in these types of situations get themselves out and do not risk their lives in future incidents, it is disrespectful to Henshaw to ignore his actions. It is a disservice to both Henshaw and the student body to pretend that he did not save another student when the fire department was not yet there to do so. While students should not be quick to emulate Henshaw, quickness in praising him is necessary and long overdue.
