Diners find mice in Stouffer

and Amy Lipman Mice are invading Stouffer Dining Commons. According to students, there have been four separate sightings of the furry rodents in the cafeteria in the last week. Engineering freshman David Tannenbaum said he spotted a "small, brownish mouse" by the kitchen in Stouffer last Wednesday. "It made me pretty disgusted about eating in Stouffer, but I still do, because it is the closest cafeteria to the Quad." And Stouffer Commons Dining Manager Addie Flowers said that a second mouse sighting occurred on the same day. This time it was in the Ware College section of the Commons, she said. But this is the only sighting she had been made aware of, she said. "As far as I know, it is the only incident this year," she added. Flowers said that the situation was brought to her attention by Residential Living. Director of Residential Living Gigi Simeone said a student raised the issue during a Residential Advisory Board Meeting. On Monday, two more rodents were seen in the dining area. College freshman Suzanne Riskin said she saw a mouse by the drink machine during lunch in the upper section. She described the creature as being "brown and four inches long, without the tail." One of the Dining Service employees promptly swept up the animal with a broom and dust pan, Riskin said. It was still alive at the time, she added. And during dinner the same night, Wharton freshman Jed Prevor spied a mouse by the vegetarian bar. He said the sight of the baby white mouse "filled him with fear and anguish." College freshman Deborah Miller also said she spotted the rodent. "I was grossed out by the mouse," she said. Flowers assured students that she is doing everything possible to avoid a mice infestation of the dining hall. She said the University has a contracted exterminator who sprays the area every Friday. She added he is on call for emergencies during the week. "All I can do is make sure we keep our halls as clean as possible and that the exterminator does his job in trying to keep the problem out," she said. The dining hall is not the only infested area. Students said they also see mice in the Quadrangle. College freshmen Steven Kappler and Aaron Abrahms discovered a mouse in their room when it emerged from their heater last Monday. Shortly after the students reported the incident, Physical Plant workers set up several glue mousetraps. One mouse was successfully trapped, but the idea that more rodents might remain in the heater worried the residents. "It's not a healthy thing, in case they carry diseases," Kappler said. "And if they die in the heater it will smell when we turn it on." This is not the first time students have found rodents in their rooms. Last year, mice were found in both Van Pelt College House and the Quad. And the Quad Commissary had continual problems with mice. Abrahms said he is annoyed by the situation. "If I wanted to see mice, I would have gone to Disneyworld," he said. Director of Dining Services Bill Canney and Director of Residential Maintenance Lynn Horner were unavailable for comment last night.