Joseph Hickey, Adams House's immensely popular maintenance crew chief, was injured in a car accident early Saturday morning and will be on leave indefinitely to recover.

Hickey was driving home on the Mystic Valley Parkway, which is northwest of Cambridge, at about 3 a.m., when a truck swerved into his lane after speeding off an exit ramp, Adams House Superintendent William B. Long said. The force knocked Hickey's car off the highway and into a tree.

Long said that Hickey suffered two broken ribs, a broken knuckle on his left hand and two punctures in his right leg. He said that he expects Hickey to return to work after a period of convalescence.

Hickey became a campus celebrity earlier this year, when it was announced that he would probably be replaced by a contracted employee not affiliated with Harvard. Adams residents were outraged, and in January protested his planned departure.

Hickey was subsequently retained.

Many Adams House affiliates said yesterday that Hickey will be sorely missed during his recovery.

"He gives his heart and soul to Adams House. He does whatever he can to help student's out," Long said.

Frank E. Pacheco '99, house committee vice-chair, praised Hickey's dedication to the house.

"Joe Hickey is the man," he said. "He's been here longer than any of us. He's always willing to go out of his way to get things fixed faster than anyone."

Carsey Yee, a resident tutor in Adams, agreed.

"Joe's one of the most dedicated University employees I've met in my six years here," Yee said.

According to Yee, Hickey extinguished a fire burning in the bushes and trees surrounding the Adams Master's House sometime last year.

"It's a very historic building," Yee said. "It could very easily have burned if not for Joe."

Adams resident Navin Narayan '99 said that Hickey makes a point of learning every student's name.

"That kind of courtesy means a lot to the students," Narayan said.

Adams House Organized a dinner and celebration in appreciation of Joe Hickey last year, Narayan said.

According to flyers distributed in the House dining hall, get-well cards can be sent to Hickey at 15 Magnolia St., Saugus, Mass., 01906.