A freight elevator accident in New York ended with one worker dead at a store in Manhattan. The unnamed 43-year old employee was loading merchandise into a freight elevator of the La Reguera Dominica-a discount store-on West 182nd Street in Washington Heights when something went terribly wrong.
Eyewitness accounts report that the elevator unexpectedly lurched upward, without any controls having been pushed. The man was trapped and crushed between the elevator car floor and the top of the door. By the time rescue workers arrived, the man had succumbed to his injuries and was declared dead at the scene.
The Daily News launched a preliminary investigation into this tragic elevator accident in Manhattan and learned that the New York City Department of Buildings has no record of an elevator at these premises. An employee from a nearby business said that the elevator was installed a year ago after the building’s previous tenant vacated and the discount store moved in. Eyewitnesses report that there weren’t doors of any kind on the elevator.
These appear to be serious violations of New York’s building code. Elevators in New York City are strictly regulated by the city and are required to be inspected and maintained on a regular basis. They are also required to be locked out of service if a mechanical defect is found.
If an investigation reveals a failure to properly maintain the elevator or uncovers a mechanical defect, the building owner and elevator maintenance company could be held responsible for this accident.
The worker’s surviving family members can file a wrongful death lawsuit against the building’s owners and elevator maintenance company. The lawsuit would allow them recover financial damages resulting from unpaid medical bills, funeral expenses, pain and suffering for the time the worker survived after the accident and lost financial support for dependents.
If you’ve been injured or have lost a family member in an elevator accident in New York, contact the experienced New York City elevator accident attorneys at the Law Offices of Nussin S. Fogel. Call 800-734-9338 or 212-385-1122 today.