4 principles to remember when stuck in an elevator

Being stuck in an elevator is a case where the elevator is moving and suddenly loses power or has a technical problem, causing the elevator to stop between floors, the elevator door gets stuck and cannot be opened, and people are trapped inside.

In addition, in some other cases, the transmission system is damaged, causing the elevator to fall freely, sliding down at a high speed, causing people in the elevator to be impacted, leading to injury or even death.

Rescue 9 people trapped in elevator

Recently, on the afternoon of August 24, the Hanoi City Police Command Information Center received a report from the people about an elevator incident at house number 269-271 Quan Nhan, Thanh Xuan district, causing a number of people to be trapped in the elevator.

Immediately, 17 officers, soldiers and specialized vehicles of the fire prevention and rescue force - Thanh Xuan District Police were mobilized to the scene to coordinate with the ward police to rescue the trapped people.

At the scene, the fire prevention and rescue force - Thanh Xuan District Police reassured the 9 victims trapped in the elevator to stay calm, ensure their health, and not panic.

After more than 10 minutes of implementing technical measures, the authorities brought the elevator back to the correct floor and opened the elevator door, bringing 9 people trapped inside out safely (including 2 children and 2 women).

The initial preliminary cause was determined to be a technical error that caused the elevator to get stuck.

Another incident that made many people shudder was when a man almost lost his life when the elevator in an apartment building had an accident and suddenly moved up even though he had only stepped halfway in.

The incident occurred at around 7:30 a.m. on August 26 at apartment building HH2C in the HH Linh Dam apartment complex, Hoang Liet ward, Hoang Mai district, Hanoi.

According to the image recorded by the camera, when the elevator door was open, a man stepped inside. When he was only halfway in, the elevator suddenly pulled up to the upper floors even though the door was not completely closed. Fortunately, the man was able to step back and escaped.

Four principles to remember when encountering problems in elevators

To minimize the dangerous effects of elevator accidents, the Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Department recommends that people follow four principles.

Principle 1: Keep calm, don't scream or panic

In all cases of elevator accidents, everyone in the elevator needs to stay calm, take a deep breath and think together to find the optimal solution. They should lower their center of gravity by sitting down or slightly bending their knees, holding the handrails firmly, especially when the elevator is moving quickly or shaking to prevent injury when the elevator crashes.

Because the elevator is closed, the space is narrow, the ventilation fan system may stop working, if people scream and move vigorously, the air will quickly become stuffy and difficult to breathe because the amount of oxygen in the elevator area will decrease rapidly, which makes children, the elderly or people with cardiovascular disease, blood pressure very easy to faint and endanger their lives.

Principle 2: Press the elevator function buttons

When the elevator is in a stable state, try pressing the door open button. If the elevator door opens, everyone can exit one by one. However, before stepping out, you need to observe carefully to avoid the situation where the elevator stops at a position that does not match the floor of the floors. If people step out without paying attention, they will miss a step and fall down the elevator shaft, endangering their lives.

In case you press the door open button but the elevator does not open, you need to calmly consider and press other emergency buttons (emergency buttons have the shape of a bell or a telephone receiver) to alert the outside for support.

Principle 3: Insert a door to create a ventilation gap to add air to the elevator.

While waiting for someone outside to come to the rescue, to prevent suffocation and difficulty breathing due to lack of air, people in the elevator can use hard objects such as keys to squeeze into the elevator door gap, then combine with other larger objects to insert into the elevator door gap.

When the elevator gap is opened, clean air flows into the elevator, making it easier for people to breathe, and the risk of fainting or stroke due to lack of air is reduced.

In case there is a phone signal in the elevator, quickly call the hotline number listed on the elevator to notify the technical department to promptly assist or you can call the fire prevention and rescue police force at 114 to come and use special vehicles to organize the rescue.

In addition, you can also contact the elevator operator or contact people outside by calling loudly or knocking on the elevator wall to send a signal. However, it should be noted that you should not hit or kick the elevator wall or door because such impacts can cause the elevator to slip, break the winch cable, and cause the elevator to fall freely.

Rule 4: Do not escape through the elevator roof hatch.

While waiting for help from outside, people should not try to open the door on the top of the elevator and escape through it because it is very easy to slip, fall, leading to injuries or fall down the elevator shaft, endangering life.