Like many campus commuters, Neshia Greene often cuts across patches of grass to get to where she wants to go. That’s what she was doing one afternoon in December when she said the ground gave way underneath her and she found herself thigh-deep in what she described as a muddy sinkhole.
“And next thing I know, straight down,” Greene said. “I was steadily going down. I was trying to get myself out, and the more I was moving and trying to crawl out, the more I was going down.”
According to an email chain obtained by The Sunflower, the next day Greene, a 52-year-old administrative assistant at OneStop, notified her boss of the incident and the unmarked hazard. She then notified Wichita State’s facilities services and then, eventually, her concerns were brought to former Provost Shirley Lefever and Interim Senior Vice President for Administration, Finance and Operations David Miller, according to the email chain. Greene said she was shocked to learn that the university was aware of the problem area, located between the Rhatigan Student Center and Elliott Hall.
“There was no (caution) tape — there was no way of knowing (it was there),” Greene said.
The Sunflower reached out to all those involved in the email chain and was referred to Strategic Communications.
Now, Greene said she is considering taking legal action against Wichita State.
She asked the university to take responsibility for the hole and subsequent injuries she said were caused by it, including a fractured wrist, through workers’ compensation. She was initially denied the compensation, according to letters sent by Associate General Counsel Joseph Dempewolf and the Kansas State Self Insurance Fund.
“While we appreciate you bringing this matter to our attention, the University denies any liability or responsibility for damages,” Dempewolf wrote in his letter to Greene.
Greene’s claim
Every day, Greene parks at the same disability parking spot near the Rhatigan Student Center — a spot she was given access to due to another injury she sustained while on campus.
She said when she decided to cross the grassy knoll between the sidewalk and her parking spot, she didn’t notice any potential hazards, just some leaves.
Then, Green said, she was up to her thighs in mud and water. She said she tried to lift herself out but felt herself slipping deeper into the hole.
“That, I believe, was the most scared I’ve ever been in my life,” Greene said.
After clawing her way out, leaving a sneaker behind in the hole in the process, she said the first thing she did was thank God. Then, she left her other shoe behind near the hole to mark the spot, toweled herself down, drove home and called her friends and family. They encouraged her to return to the scene to take photos and videos of the area as proof of the incident.
The following day, that’s what Greene did.
She also sent an email to her supervisor at OneStop, Aaron Hamilton. From there, the email chain, including a video taken by Greene of the spot where she fell, was forwarded to several OneStop employees, facilities, and administrative staff until it landed in the inbox of Michael Basgall, the director of licensed trade operations. Basgall’s reply: “I have notified the city about this multiple times. I’m not sure what else to do.“
Eventually, Miller relayed that he would have a conversation with Executive Director of Facilities Services Eason Bryer.
Greene said there were traffic cones surrounding the spot on Dec. 12. But she said the cones were a small consolation compared to the unsympathetic response she said she got from some of the faculty and staff involved, especially those who knew of the hazard prior to her encounter with it.
“The sad part about all this situation is even after all of this, and then knowing about it, was the dismissiveness of it all,” Greene said.
What caused the hole?
Late last year, a WSU-hired contractor ruptured a city of Wichita water main line, according to Bryer. The resulting water and damages warranted the removal of existing concrete pavers and asphalt. Shortly after the line break, Byer estimated the repairs to the line and the area would be finished in December.
According to a statement provided by Director of Strategic Communication Lainie Mazzullo-Hart, “the leak created a temporary muddy grassy area that was not in the direct path of pedestrian traffic.”
Greene disagreed with this definition. She said this “muddy grassy area” is what she fell into.
“It hurts my heart, really, how they’re handling this situation, because it was not like I stepped in a puddle of mud,” Greene said. “I don’t want to cry … (but if they saw) how I was struggling, trying to get out of that hole — I literally thought I was about to die because it was so far down.”
University response
Over the next few days, Greene said she experienced back and wrist pain. When she visited her doctor, Greene said her physician “believes that it’s (her wrist) just fractured,” and she was issued a medical bill for more than $500. While an X-ray did not show a fracture, Greene said she has an MRI scheduled for Feb. 3.
Greene requested a claim through Kansas Workers Compensation the day after the incident. But on Dec. 17, Greene was notified by the state and the university that she would not qualify for compensation.
Greene said the deniability added hurt more than the physical pain of her wrist injury.
“For them to be like, ‘We’re not responsible, even though we knew about the area,’” Greene said, trailing off. “We hear all the time from the top … ‘We’re happy to have you all (faculty and staff) here. You know, you all do such an awesome job. We wouldn’t be WSU without the employees and without you, you know, putting in the work that you do,’ and all of that. But then when it comes down to the nitty-gritty of all of this, this is how we get treated?”
Greene said she did get her other shoe back after requesting it “for evidence” to build her own legal case. But she said the university had “cleaned (it) off” before returning it to her.
Now, Greene and her lawyer, Brian Pistotnik of Brian & Brian Pistotnik Law, have filed a request for an E-1, which would grant them a hearing to rediscuss Greene’s workers’ compensation case.
Greene said she doesn’t want to go through with legal action, but she feels she doesn’t have many other choices.
In the meantime, Greene said she harbors no hard feelings toward her colleagues at OneStop and those involved who offered their sympathy.
“This is all the red tape stuff that goes on, you know, behind the scenes,” Greene said. “I mean, they could have been just as much as a victim as me.’”
