Being trapped in a confined elevator is everyones worst nightmare.
Youre hanging stories above the ground and your only lifeline is the emergency call button in front of you.
According to theNew York Times,the elevator had been recently inspected and had no visible problems.
My sixth-floor apartment building has faced its own elevator problems, trapping people almost weekly.
So how should you handle this horror movie-in-the-making?
Heres some advice to pulling yourself out of a sticky situation when youre stranded in an elevator.
Stay Calm
This 2008New Yorkerstory captures exactly what its like to find yourself trapped in an elevator.
As the emergency bell rang and rang, he began to fear that it might somehowelectricity?
heat?start a fire.
Recently, there had been a small fire in the building, rendering the elevators unusable.
The
Business Week
staff had walked down forty-three stories.
He also began hearing unlikely oscillations in the ringing: aural hallucinations.
Before long, he began to contemplate death.
This goes without saying, but Ill say it anyway.
When youre trapped in a small space, its very easy to go into fight-or-flight mode.
Stay as calm as you might and focus on the task at hand.
Getting worked up wont help you out of the elevator any sooner.
Heres why you shouldnt: attempting to move an elevator yourself could only worsen the problem.
If youre high above the ground, you risk falling out of the door.
Dont worry about that.
Firefighters are likely to respond quicker than an elevator company, especially if youre in dire straits.
And as mentioned above, remain calm.
