"harry" wrote

This old hat. In the UK some one would end up in jail over this. the
company/university would be fined millions.
Employees that fail to observe safety proceedures are dismissed over
here.
Before working on machinery,all workers have to attend safety
lectures.
Large companies employ people whose entire job is about safety.

This is so elementary it's beyond belief.

It happened at 2 AM, not the normal hours where there would be many people
around. She was a student, not an employee. She willingly ignored proper
safety precautions.

You are correct, she should be dismissed for failing to observe safety
procedures. Her carelessness should not result in a huge fines for the
university. You do have to take some responsibility for yourself.