April 22, 2008
What 41 Hours in an Elevator Looks Like
Last week, the plight of production manager Nicholas White's 41-hour elevator ordeal at the McGraw-Hill building was detailed in the New Yorker. After a time-lapse video of his near-two days trapped in an elevator was put online, thousands of people have watched and shuddered at the thought of being in a similar situation, allowing media outlets to call it an "Internet sensation."
White was interviewed by Good Morning America and he explained he still takes elevators: "Living in Manhattan I'd be seriously limiting my life if I didn't take elevators."
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i would have wacked off and put jizz on all the buttons!
#1 - classy.
But seriously, I was trapped in an elevator for three minutes once, and it was terrifying. This guy's a champ for not losing his mind.
I don't understand why he didn't go for the roof. That's what everyone does in the movies. It looks like he didn't try very hard to get out. no cellphone? no phone elevator? no elevator alarm? scary.
according to what i remember from the article, the escape hatch was locked. and even if it was opened, he was in an express shaft (and not john mcclain) so it would have been a huge unknown distance for a common man to attempt.
you can see him in the video try for the roof.
Maybe Big Tobacco should have to put a disclaimer on their packaging about the dangers of increased elevator use.
I would probably try to sleep as much as possible to kill time. The video is pretty cool, he seems pretty relaxed about it for the most part and then when he escapes it is like he is leaving an elevator like on any other day.
I think he was trying to use a cell phone or to text message--but sometimes you can't get a signal in an elevator...did the article say why there was no communication with an emergency phone or intercom? Most elevators have them, but they aren't servicable?
I read that he went out on a cigarette break, left his jacket in his office (with his cell phone in), and told a coworker he would be right back. Who knows why the coworker wasn't alarmed when he didn't come back in a little bit and didn't come back for his jacket before they left.
i hope his fabrige (sp?) egg was ok during this ordeal. I know that would be my main concern if trapped in an elevatator.
I don't understand why this wasn't noticed sooner -- who was monitoring the security cameras? No one, I guess.
the question is, is he still smoking?
where are his co-workers? shouldn't his boss notice his/her employee is missing?
I'm glad he got money out of this.
He had no cell phone nor was there a phone in the elevator car. he rang the alarm but grew tired of the noise but continued to do so in case someone would be passing by.
I didn't know it was a young guy, for some reason I thought it would be someone older.
wow, this happened in 1999.
I hope they don't use his story to make another one of those terrible stop smoking ads.
"If I hadn't gone for a smoke break, my ass wouldn't have been trapped in an elevator for 41 hrs."
Um, this happened back in 1999. Everyone and his dog has a cell phone now.
I blame the maintenance workers. The alarm was going off and there was a camera in the elevator; however, they never thought to investigate? Not once in 40+ hours? Incompetence.
The New Yorker article says that his coworker wasn't alarmed that he didn't return; rather, she left a nasty note taped to his computer screen, thinking he'd left for the night (they were working late on a Friday).
Most shockingly, maintenance work was being performed on other elevators from that elevator bank (they never wondered where that elevator was) and security guards were supposedly monitoring the security cameras.
New Yorker article also states that he is currently unemployed. He sought a lawsuit instead of returning to his job after this happened. Although numbers weren't used, he didn't make a killing from the settlement.
Being stuck in an elevator alone isn't terrifying. It's awfully boring, though. And it quickly gets pretty warm with essentially no air circulation. I'd hate it more if I was stuck for half an hour in a full elevator.
I'll take the stairs. A little exercise is good thing.