New York Elevator Accidents Affect Construction Crews and Public

More details are emerging about the December incident where a 41-year-old woman was killed in a New York elevator accident.

The terrifying incident happened when the door of an elevator suddenly closed and the elevator rose while she wasn't fully inside, Bloomberg News reported. The impact killed her instantly.

Our New York City construction accident lawyers are concerned because we recognize that heavily-used elevators during construction can not only injure construction workers, but also the public once the building is completed and opened. These machines are vital in New York City, given our large skyscraper buildings. But they also take a lot of abuse.

The wear and tear of these machines can cause problems, but so too can poor maintenance. Elevator companies are required to do routine inspections, but if that is botched, it can put a lot of people in harm's way.

Fox News reports that a criminal investigation has been opened into the woman's death because electrical work done by the maintenance company hours before the woman died may have led to the accident. The news station reports that the only cited problems with the elevator car to this point have been paperwork problems. But it appears there may have been other issues that led to the death.

Whether large freight elevators that carry heavy equipment up floors during the construction of a building or passenger elevators that are moving up and down at fast rates all day long, these machines can wear down and cause major injuries in New York elevator accidents.

If crews ignore the posted maximum weight for the elevator time and time again, the car can suffer damage, which can manifest itself in problems later on. Sadly, this isn't just an issue for construction crews, but also for the public.

While these machines get used over and over again during the construction of a building or during a remodeling project dozens of stories up, they are then used by everyday people, who have no idea how much abuse they have taken. We trust that these will work properly, but sometimes the negligence of the contractors or the workers inspecting them cause them problems that we can't know about until it's too late.

The Manhattan injury lawyers at Antin, Ehrlich & Epstein can be reached toll free at 888-563-4213.