No one was hurt Wednesday, July 16, after four people were rescued from an elevator shaft in Yonkers.
The address of the incident is a construction site for a planned 27-story residential tower. According to a spokesperson for the city of Yonkers, the incident occurred at about 10 a.m. Wednesday at the construction site.
“Four individuals became trapped in an elevator car located 20 feet below the fifth floor within a blind shaft measuring approximately 35 feet in height. The Yonkers Fire Department (YFD) responded promptly, arriving within minutes,” the spokesperson said. “Elevator mechanic Brock Glenn, present at the site, attempted to maneuver the elevator but determined that it was immobile. Subsequently, YFD established a system of ladders and ropes to facilitate the safe removal of the four workers. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) were also on site to evaluate the workers’ condition. Fortunately, no injuries were reported.”
Yonkers Police Department assisted Yonkers firefighters on scene at 44 Hudson St., Detective Lt. Frank DiDomizio told The Journal News.
The elevator was last inspected on May 30, according to the city spokesperson, and authorized for construction-use only.
What to do if you get stuck in an elevator
According to a 2024 American National Standards Institute (ANSI) report, Americans ride in elevators about 20.6 billion times a year, and elevators carry on average 20,000 passengers annually.
Getting stuck in an elevator is a rare event, ANSI says, and the odds of getting “stuck in an elevator” are one in 100,000.
The New York City Buildings Department recommends three steps when stuck in an elevator:
In case of an elevator emergency:
(This story was updated with new information and visuals.)
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Four rescued from Yonkers elevator shaft. What to do if you are trapped in an elevator
Reporting by Ashley Catherine Fontones, Rockland/Westchester Journal News / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
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