AccidentA man crushed to death in a NYC elevator accident

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[–]Oneda 29 insightful - 1 fun29 insightful - 0 fun30 insightful - 1 fun -  (9 children)

I heard about this yesterday and I was already wondering "Will WPD have a video about this?". I was not disappointed and it showed up sooner than expected.

I'm always curious about how witnesses react to situations like this. Different people, different reactions. The lady who comes from the left immediately shielded her eyes with both hands to not see the ongoing crushing of the man. The girl on the phone looks at the scene when she hears it, then immediately turns around to get away. The bald dude who seems like a worker at the place just looks at it and seems to calmly walk away as if it's a problem for somebody else to deal with. The longhaired person near the elevator simply steps to the side, while the kid with the backpack who almost became the dead one holds his head then covers his mouth and then looks to others as if looking for something. I wonder what all of these people were thinking at the time.

[–]ganesho 17 insightful - 1 fun17 insightful - 0 fun18 insightful - 1 fun -  (3 children)

The kid seemed to go immediately into "survivor's guilt" mode. He barely escaped death, and he wonders whether this was his fault and/or if he could've done something to save the man.

[–]Catholicmath 8 insightful - 1 fun8 insightful - 0 fun9 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

His reaction was the one to watch. He got the full view and sound of what happened. Crazy to see it all unfold

[–]Church_of_Thurston 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

I didn't even think of the sounds. Fuck.

[–]Oneda 5 insightful - 1 fun5 insightful - 0 fun6 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Hmm good point! He maybe wondered, had he only gotten off faster, maybe the dude behind him wouldn't have been eaten by the elevator. Then again it's not really his fault as it seems that even as he's already walking out, the elevator was already not stopping to go down. I hope he sees this video so that he won't have to live with a guilt that he's not supposed to be carrying. It's just a horrible accident, possibly a product of bad maintenance.

[–]Sydia 5 insightful - 14 fun5 insightful - 13 fun6 insightful - 14 fun -  (4 children)

Someone should beat the shit out of those women. They could have at least pretended to show some concern, but no- they just cover their eyes and run away; not try to hold the door open; not try to grab his hand; nothing! Fuck people!

[–]niggastolemybike 29 insightful - 3 fun29 insightful - 2 fun30 insightful - 3 fun -  (1 child)

What were they supposed to do? There was nothing anybody could have done in that moment to help.

[–]Jaylou 4 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 0 fun5 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

I agree, and it happened so fast.

[–]geezer_bird 19 insightful - 2 fun19 insightful - 1 fun20 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

I think you are being unreasonable. What can they do to help really? Grab his hand how? It was an horrific incident to witness and nothing indicated indifference to me. I don't know how you can see that unless you already think badly of women and you wanted to see it to back up your opinion. I don't want to start an argument with you but I honestly am astonished by your comment.

[–]Syzygy 9 insightful - 2 fun9 insightful - 1 fun10 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

What the fuck?...

[–]Oneda 16 insightful - 2 fun16 insightful - 1 fun17 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

I just realized that the people left in the elevator must have also had a horrible time, unable to escape the reality that a crushed person is dangling right in front of them and they can't go anywhere until help arrived.

[–]DoctorsHateHim 7 insightful - 5 fun7 insightful - 4 fun8 insightful - 5 fun -  (4 children)

I'm adding "avoid elevators" to the long list of things I won't touch now due to these videos. Basically at this point, I'm confined to a bare room with a pad of paper (no writing utensil)

[–]Jaylou 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

We have a paternoster lift at my university and it already scared the life out of me but after seeing this it's a definite no-no.

[–]Rymanjan 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

Oh shit arent those like uber rare? Iirc they just run on continuous loops and leave it to the passenger to have the faculties and capabilities to get off in time

[–]Jaylou 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Yeah there were these rumors that if you stayed on it when it went over the top and back down you could get injured but I'm thinking that surely isn't true, still I never went near it!

[–]Amputree 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Just pay a tiny amount of attention to your surroundings and you'll be fine. If the elevator starts to move with the door open, don't walk through it.

Most of these people are just oblivious.

[–]roger[S] 8 insightful - 2 fun8 insightful - 1 fun9 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/22/nyregion/nyc-elevator-death-accident.html

[–]genefenster99 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

wow, nothing to say, just paywall

[–]cuntard 8 insightful - 2 fun8 insightful - 1 fun9 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

JFC. this was at a luxury condo building. units range from $1M - $5M. it had long-standing elevator problems and they had been fined for being out of compliance earlier this year. victim was 30 years old. it will do him no good, but i think his next of kin will be winning a substantial lawsuit over this.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/22/nyregion/nyc-elevator-death-accident.html

[–]genefenster99 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

thanks for the paywall

[–]QaraBoga 8 insightful - 1 fun8 insightful - 0 fun9 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

what a terrifying thing to witness.

[–]viramp 4 insightful - 4 fun4 insightful - 3 fun5 insightful - 4 fun -  (1 child)

Only in China!

wait, wut

[–]minminminmin 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Americans are shit at building elevators and they clearly don't care about their people.

[–]pacman 4 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 0 fun5 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

These are apartments not condos. In Manhattan, many of the buildings are very old turn of the century designs. Manhattan real estate also has a tremendous amount of foreign investment by companies with little interest in maintenance or upgrades, and they just want cash out of the building. The fact that these are expensive apartments means nothing. Fortunately tenants do have rights in NYC and hopefully this building owner is taken to the cleaners. My guess the elevator needed complete replacement which would have been very expensive if it also required building code upgrades.

Edit: Nope - Building was constructed in 1997 making this even weirder. Somebody cheaped out on the elevator or bad installation. Either way, landlord still didn't want to invest after many complaints. Hopefully a prosecution and a lawsuit.

The deceased was from a family of doctors.

https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/jsonline/obituary.aspx?n=sam-charles-waisbren&pid=193722462&fhid=19713

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7389685/Tech-exec-30-crushed-malfunctioning-elevator-NYC-died-mechanical-asphyxia.html

[–]Boats_Molone 4 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 0 fun5 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

There is no licensing requirement in NY. Anyone can stick their hands into one to “fix it”.

There are several safeties that did not function here.

There’s supposed to be a restrictor on that does not allow the doors to open outside a door zone. Which was one of their fines.

These restirctors are taken off fairly often as they cause issues. They probably put one on, had their inspection, then took it off the next day.

There are also door switches that prevent the car moving when doors are open.

It looks like the car is running through the brake. It lost traction on the sheave overhead and is now going into the pit. (Was reported it also did end up in the pit)

This elevator had some serious problems. If you find yourself in an elevator still moving at your exit floor, do not get out. wait for it to stop fully.

New York and it’s shitty licensing or lack of killed this guy.

[–]Rymanjan 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Thanks I'll be taking the stairs tyvm

[–]CounterSniper 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

I can’t speak to all places but where I live I found out that the inspection certificates in the elevators aren’t really that at all. There is no govt agency that comes out to inspect elevators as one would assume. I thought it was similar to health inspectors.

But one time I was working a job where I had to go to May buildings and some of the elevators were very shady. I came across one where the certificate was more than a year expired.

So I contacted the agency responsible for those certificates and found out to my shock and horror that those things aren’t issued after the elevator passes an inspection and that they never go around like a health inspector checking the condition of elevators. They merely send out new certificates when the buildings swear or affirm that they pay a elevator company for service.

And I found out thru my current job that the service companies can only recommend anything beyond routine maintenance. It’s up to the building to agree to and pay for improvements. My building has been delaying replacements of the elevators here because they spent all their money on improving the look of the lobby. Now they’re flat broke and the elevator company says these elevators that were installed in 1965 will be lucky to last 6 more months.

I use the stairs whenever possible now.

[–]Sebastian 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

What the fuck, I thought this things only happens in CHINA?!

[–]Acid 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

The Chinese are sabotaging our elevators!

[–]geezer_bird 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

I hate lifts, when I was in India I had to use one in sn office block where building work was still being done. Now I didn't want to be the Western princess not trusting safety of Indian building. But, I totally was. Leapt in and out each time I had to use them when I was with other people and it would be weird to use stairs.

[–]Jaylou 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (3 children)

I've watched the video a few times and find it hard to see exactly what his fatal injuries must have been. Could he have been severed in some way? The reactions of the onlookers are very sad to watch.

[–]PurpleHelmut71 8 insightful - 2 fun8 insightful - 1 fun9 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Squishage.

[–]Boats_Molone 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Old post, but to help you:

The elevator door operator is directly above the door opening. You can see the large circular door sheave.

Our running clearance for elevators is 1.25”. That’s the tightest point up front. That door operator is maybe 2 inches beyond that. As the car went down he was squished and rolled between that operator and the shaft wall in about 3 or 4 inches of space.

Unless he was trapped between, then he was probably ripped apart.

[–]At-The-Fire-Pit 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Internal injuries/bleeding, possibly snapped neck, and/or shock