Elevator Horror Stories That Will Make You Never Want To Set Foot In A Steel Death Trap Again
Let’s be honest: We’re all guilty of ignoring our doctors’ advice to take the stairs way more often than we do. Because no one expects taking the elevator to be the last decision they ever make.
But sometimes that’s exactly what it turns out to be. And we’re talking fireballs, fatal injuries, crushed bones and claustrophobic nightmares. These brave souls learned the hard way that ditching the stairs is not always the easy option.
So check out this terrifying collection of elevator death and dismemberment stories. It’ll make your stomach drop faster than a quick descent from the top of a high-rise building.
Counting Error
Back in 2008, 26 high school cheerleaders attending a cheerleading camp at the University of Texas decided to see if they could all cram into an elevator at Jester Residence Hall. Far exceeding the elevator’s 15-person capacity, the elevator stalled en route from the fourth to the first floor and emergency responders were forced to assess the scene.
After nearly a half hour of work, the girls were safely rescued from the cramped elevator carriage.
Faulty Carriage
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A delivery man in Bangalore, India had just finished his route at the Devara Jeevana Hall before pressing the call button for an elevator to take him to the first floor.
When the doors opened, he stepped inside, realizing a moment too late that there was no elevator carriage to greet him.
After falling one story to the bottom of the shaft, he was soon crushed by a faulty elevator car that landed directly on top of him.
Botched Escape
Unfortunately for a 24-year-old Chinese nurse trapped in a stalled elevator located in Shenzhen’s Luohu District, escape wasn’t an option.
Just as she was attempting an exit from the elevator’s open doors, the car started to rapidly descend, trapping her head between the wall and the doorway.
The young medical professional’s body was sliced in half a result of the fall.
Empty Shaft
When Aber Al-Rabahi pushed a stroller holding her six-week-old daughter Areej Ali into the elevator of a Coney Island apartment building, there was no car to hold their weight.
Instead, Al-Rabhai unknowingly stepped into an open elevator shaft, falling five feet before landing on top of both the car’s roof and her daughter.
Unfortunately, the newborn did not survive the fall.