Woman finds herself locked inside fitness center alone

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

(7/17/07 - KTRK/HOUSTON) (KTRK) -- A Houston woman got locked in a 24 Hour Fitness center. How could this happen?

Can you imagine a woman being stuck in a 24 Hour Fitness center at 10:00 at night? Just think about it.

Serena Yen knew she was locked into an exercise routine. But, she never imagined she would become a prisoner in the gym ! It all started on the Sunday before Memorial Day when she worked out at a 24 Hour Fitness studio around 10 at night.

"I went upstairs to do cardio," she recalled. "About 30 minutes into my cardio, I'm looking around and there was nobody on the top floor."

The place was deserted. Serena noticed the lights out and the doors locked. Somehow 24 Hour Fitness closed while she was still in it. She called her brother.

"I had my brother call the 800 number and they were not open," Serena explained. "There was no one there, no one working on the weekend. They only work from Monday through Friday."

So she called the police. But they had no key.

"So, at that moment I was like, 'Oh my gosh. What am I going to do?' Because I can't reach anyone and the police can't get me out. I'm pretty much doomed there," Serena said.

The police reminded her about the emergency door and she started hunting for it in the dark.

She said, "I kind of went through the dark to try to find the emergency door and come out of that."

Serena has been a member of 24 Hour Fitness for three years. She was miffed when no one there apologized or seemed to take her situation seriously.

We got in touch with 24 Hour Fitness headquarters in San Francisco. They apologized for what happened and as a good will gesture extended her membership for an additional year at no cost. They also said they'll make sure the staff at each of their 400 centers will thoroughly check the building before they lock up. They will also post a 1-800 number at the front desk for "24 hour" emergencies.

They're going to leave an 800 number for people who might get stuck in 24 Hour Fitness center. Well, 24 hours should mean you're going to be open 24 hours, but unfortunately this is not the case.

Anyway, I want to thank the folks in San Francisco for taking action on this problem.
Marvin Zindler, Eyewitness News!
(Copyright © 2007, KTRK-TV)

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