Fordham University says the student who died in a bell tower fall is the first such incident in the

September 26, 2024

Fordham University officials said that the student who died falling in the campus bell tower is the first incident of its kind in school history.

In a statement to INSIDER, a spokesperson for Fordham said there have been "no other falls in or from Keating Tower."

The door to the bell tower is normally locked the spokesman said, though climbing the bell tower is reportedly seen as a "rite of passage" for students at the university.

"Regardless of rules and an arduous ascent, climbing to the Keating clock tower tops the bucket list of many Fordham students. While several accounts of the climb rival ghost stories and mysteries, the overall assessment is that the experience is worth the risk," the paper said.

Monfries, a journalism student set to graduate in the coming weeks, tripped on debris on the spiral staircase, fell 30 feet from one level to another, and later died.

Fordham President Joseph M. McShane issued a statement about her death, saying she died "after sustaining a fall inside the Keating Clock tower in the early hours of the morning."

It remains unclear how Monfries and other students who have climbed the stairs got into the tower.

A Fordham spokesperson told INSIDER that the university is investigating how the students gained access to the building and tower.

He said Keating Hall is locked at night and was locked before the students entered.

"In the past, authorized University officials have sometimes given tours of the tower, in part to satisfy students' curiosity about it, and reduce the likelihood that they would attempt to enter the structure without authorization," the spokesperson said.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7scHLrJxnppdkr6p7y6Kdnqukrrmme8WoqZ2gkaJ6trrIr5yrq5mpxm6%2FwLKqZqyYmnq0wNSdnKesXay1sHnDopydZZmjeqJ5wZ6jpWWkpMSmvoyfmKWkXZ7AbsDHnmSfoaKowW6%2F1JyfaKxoaoaospg%3D