5 ms·

Hey, never, but never, go out of an elevator that isn't leveled in the floor. By the description, I understand that he jumped from the elevator. If the elevator

by neves 11y ago

Hey, never, but never, go out of an elevator that isn't leveled in the floor. By the description, I understand that he jumped from the elevator. If the elevator started to move, he could have been cut in half. This happened other day in my city. If you are stuck in a elevator, wait for professional help to take you out.

andy_ppp 11y ago
I once dreamt I was cut in half by a lift. It was not at all fun, so I'd definitely follow this advice :-D The other piece of lift related advice (that I really enjoy saying in more crowded, rickety lifts): I once read if in a lift that is falling you should attempt to lie flat on the bottom of the lift to limit the impact - preferably on top of another human. Some hacker news physicist will prove me apocryphal here I'm sure...
- stouset 11y ago
  If an elevator is falling for long enough to give you time to recognize the situation, recall this strategy, and actually lie prone upon the floor (in ~0G, somehow)… it's not going to matter.
  - vhost- 11y ago
    You both should watch the elevator hacking talk that was given at HOPE X: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUvGfuLlZus https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUvGfuLlZus
    - andy_ppp 11y ago
      This is already very entertaining :-) Thanks!
    - nyolfen 11y ago
      Seconding this: I like to put hacker con talks on in the background while I do other things, and this was the most entertaining panel from HOPE X in my opinion
  - djsumdog 11y ago
    There's a video of security footage from some elevator in South America (Argentina I think) in a brand new building. The elevator brakes failed and it launched upward (from the counter weight). Dude survived with major injuries. Others have said he should have laid down flat, but at that velocity who knows if it would have done any good.
- neves 11y ago
  I've read somewhere that a free falling elevator is almost impossible due to its automatic brakes.
nyolfen 11y ago
Do you live in China by any chance?
_asummers 11y ago
And watch this[0] entire (super entertaining) talk from Hope X about elevator security. You get a pretty good feal for how the safety measures work after watching it. [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUvGfuLlZus https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUvGfuLlZus
OJFord 11y ago
But if it's stopped, why would you expect it to be more likely to move suddenly (and without the doors closing) because it's not level? I've often seen (and used) lifts with notices up like: Warning: does not level. Wheelchair users use other lift.
- djsumdog 11y ago
  There's a horrible video I don't feel like looking up at work of a dude in an elevator that's acting all erratically. A guy with a baby stroller is about to get in. The guy tells the guy not to; the elevator hasn't been behaving correctly (there's no audio/security video. Guy tells the police this later). Guy in the elevator looks terrified. The man with the stroller steps in and the elevator cuts him in half. There's a trail of blood on the wall where the man use to be. It turns out the maintenance guy forgot to put out barriers saying the elevator was under repair. He was moving it from above and didn't realize people were getting in.
- neves 11y ago
  There's not enough detail in the link. You can force the doors of an elevator to open it. Sometimes there's just a small hole to go through. The elevator had problems and was moving arbitrary. Sure, if it is just 5cm off, go for it, but don't think you are inside a movie and it is save to go out. In doubt, stay quiet.
adrianN 11y ago
> If you are stuck in a elevator, wait for professional help to take you out. Sometimes that doesn't work. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/03/07/woman-starved-to-death-after-being-stranded-for-a-month-on-an-elevator-in-china/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/03/0...
- goldenkey 11y ago
  In China...Hmm I would think that considering the population she would have been noticed. Terrible..

by neves 11y ago

andy_ppp 11y ago

I once dreamt I was cut in half by a lift. It was not at all fun, so I'd definitely follow this advice :-D The other piece of lift related advice (that I really enjoy saying in more crowded, rickety lifts): I once read if in a lift that is falling you should attempt to lie flat on the bottom of the lift to limit the impact - preferably on top of another human. Some hacker news physicist will prove me apocryphal here I'm sure...

stouset 11y ago
If an elevator is falling for long enough to give you time to recognize the situation, recall this strategy, and actually lie prone upon the floor (in ~0G, somehow)… it's not going to matter.
- vhost- 11y ago
  You both should watch the elevator hacking talk that was given at HOPE X: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUvGfuLlZus https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUvGfuLlZus
  - andy_ppp 11y ago
    This is already very entertaining :-) Thanks!
  - nyolfen 11y ago
    Seconding this: I like to put hacker con talks on in the background while I do other things, and this was the most entertaining panel from HOPE X in my opinion
- djsumdog 11y ago
  There's a video of security footage from some elevator in South America (Argentina I think) in a brand new building. The elevator brakes failed and it launched upward (from the counter weight). Dude survived with major injuries. Others have said he should have laid down flat, but at that velocity who knows if it would have done any good.
neves 11y ago
I've read somewhere that a free falling elevator is almost impossible due to its automatic brakes.

nyolfen 11y ago

Do you live in China by any chance?

_asummers 11y ago

And watch this[0] entire (super entertaining) talk from Hope X about elevator security. You get a pretty good feal for how the safety measures work after watching it. [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUvGfuLlZus https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUvGfuLlZus

OJFord 11y ago

But if it's stopped, why would you expect it to be more likely to move suddenly (and without the doors closing) because it's not level? I've often seen (and used) lifts with notices up like: Warning: does not level. Wheelchair users use other lift.

djsumdog 11y ago
There's a horrible video I don't feel like looking up at work of a dude in an elevator that's acting all erratically. A guy with a baby stroller is about to get in. The guy tells the guy not to; the elevator hasn't been behaving correctly (there's no audio/security video. Guy tells the police this later). Guy in the elevator looks terrified. The man with the stroller steps in and the elevator cuts him in half. There's a trail of blood on the wall where the man use to be. It turns out the maintenance guy forgot to put out barriers saying the elevator was under repair. He was moving it from above and didn't realize people were getting in.
neves 11y ago
There's not enough detail in the link. You can force the doors of an elevator to open it. Sometimes there's just a small hole to go through. The elevator had problems and was moving arbitrary. Sure, if it is just 5cm off, go for it, but don't think you are inside a movie and it is save to go out. In doubt, stay quiet.

adrianN 11y ago

> If you are stuck in a elevator, wait for professional help to take you out. Sometimes that doesn't work. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/03/07/woman-starved-to-death-after-being-stranded-for-a-month-on-an-elevator-in-china/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/03/0...

goldenkey 11y ago
In China...Hmm I would think that considering the population she would have been noticed. Terrible..