15-foot fall puts junior in HUP

College junior Lorna Bernhoft was injured from a 15-foot fall at an off-campus house early Tuesday morning, according to University spokeswoman Lori Doyle.

Bernhoft has remained in critical condition at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

She was in surgery for nine hours on Tuesday night, according to a CarePages website set up by Bernhoft’s family.

Bernhoft has a broken back and head injuries. “They stabilized her spine with metal rods and removed her frontal bone (forehead) so that her brain can swell without damaging anything else,” her sister Sheila wrote.

Wednesday night, Sheila posted that Bernhoft squeezed family members’ hands and “gave us a thumbs up on each hand when prompted by the nurse.”

Bernhoft was at an informal gathering with members of her a cappella group, Quaker Notes, when the accident occurred, according to Wharton senior Jennifer Costello, the president of Chi Omega sorority — in which Bernhoft is also a member.

Costello said Bernhoft fell from an attic room around 1:30 a.m. Bernhoft reportedly sat on a board covering a hole from which a collapsible ladder had been removed.

“The board fell down beneath her,” Costello said. “Lorna fell and hit the staircase.” According to Costello, Bernhoft was unconscious when the paramedics arrived to transport her to HUP.

Counseling and Psychological Services held a private information session for Bernhoft’s friends, including members of Quaker Notes and Chi Omega, on Tuesday afternoon.

Bernhoft’s parents and siblings arrived in Philadelphia on Tuesday, Doyle confirmed.

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to Lorna and her family,” Doyle wrote in an e-mail, adding that the University is providing services and counseling to her friends, who are “extremely distraught.”

“It’s so startling, shocking and surreal,” Costello said. “This is something that doesn’t happen every day. It’s not like she was doing anything risky. It was just a freak accident.”