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We've all experienced travelling in a creaky lift that sounds like it might not make it to its destination. It's never a pleasant experience. And although, no one wants to get stuck in a lift - it can and does happen. Here are five quick tips for what you should and shouldn’t do if you ever get stuck in a lift.
As soon as you realise you’re stuck, you may feel a sense of panic. However, it’s important for you to stay calm. Do your best to keep others in the lift calm also, reassuring them so that they know that everything will be okay. While being trapped within a lift is undoubtedly a stressful situation it is highly unlikely that there is any immediate risk to passengers.
No matter how easy it may seem, you should never attempt to force open the lift car or landing doors to escape. This is even more important if the lift was mid travel at the time of failure. A lift, which has stopped between floors is likely to have a large gap between the car and landing sills and attempting to leave the lift could result in a passenger falling into the lift well causing serious injury.
Most modern lifts will feature an emergency communication device or auto dialler. This allows an entrapped passenger to call for assistance, usually by pressing the alarm button for a prescribed duration of time. Older lifts without an auto dialler will often have an emergency telephone or at least an emergency number to call.
Once in communication with the emergency service (maintenance contractor, building services etc) and have explained your situation, provide them with the address of the building and, if there are a number of lifts within the building, the lift ID, number or location within the building.
If you are using a mobile phone, avoid calling the emergency services such as fire brigade etc unless all other options have failed.
Any breakdown, which involves a passenger entrapment will receive priority attention from a lift contractor but it may still be some time before the closest engineer is able to arrive on site. Continue to remain calm and relaxed until help arrives.
Once the people responsible to remove you from the lift arrive, remain calm and answer any questions they have. They will have procedures in place to remove you safely, so it's important that you follow their lead. Once the lift starts to move again, wait until the lift doors open before attempting to exit the lift.
And remember, people travel in lifts all day, every day, and never get stuck. If you do find yourself stuck in a lift, these tips should help your experience be straightforward and hassle-free. One last thing, to be on the safe side, we also recommend you to not use a lift if you're the only person in a building.
If you’re concerned about the state of your lift, or its maintenance plan, get in touch to see how we can help.
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