Three Spend Hour Trapped In Elevator

Three people were trapped for an hour inside a downtown elevator Saturday afternoon.

Two women and a child were using an elevator at Riverpark Square when it stopped just before 2 p.m. They tried using the alarm buzzer, but no help arrived.

One of the women then used her cellular telephone to call the fire department.

The parking garage staff who are responsible for monitoring the alarm didn’t hear it, fire Lt. Bruce Moline said. It took firefighters and an elevator technician about an hour to rescue the people.

The problem turned out to be a broken selector tape, a metal band that helps drive the car. “This thing snapped,” Moline said.

“It broke right in two. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen that.”

The passengers were fine, but startled. “They were a little bit shaken, nervous about it, but they still had lights on so they could see,” Moline said. “It’s extra spooky when the lights are off.”

An elevator technician pushed some magnetic relays by hand, lowering the car and freeing those inside.

“They were pretty happy to get out,” Moline said. “And the little kid was happy too.”

, DataTimes