A woman, 41, was tragically killed when the elevator she stepped onto malfunctioned and lurched forward pinning her between the outside of the car and the wall of the elevator shaft.
Although the elevator doors didn't close, the cab suddenly lurched up, knocking her to the floor and pinning her legs outside. Her lower body was crushed between the first and second floors, as two passengers looked on. They received treatment for psychological trauma.
Just hours before prior to the accident electrical maintenance was performed on the elevator by Transel Elevator Inc., whom services several prominent buildings in the area. The New York City’s Buildings Department will be conducting citywide inspections of elevators maintenance by the company.
The last fatal elevator accident to occur in the city also involved Transel and happened on Sept 23, when a technician for the company was servicing the elevator on the 10th floor and fell to his death.
Fatal elevator accidents are rare. An estimated 900,000 elevators in the U.S. make 18 billion passenger trips each year, according to the database ConsumerWatch.com, while an average of 27 people are killed in elevator accidents.
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