Terrifying Moment As Lift At Kerinchi PPR Flat Fell To The Ground With Residents Inside It
More than half a dozen people were injured after the lift crashed from the fifth floor.
By Sadho Ram — 03 Aug 2019, 11:35 AM
On Friday, 2 August, several residents at the Kerinchi public housing project (PPR) flat were in for a terrifying ride as the lift they were in crashed and fell 15 metres to the ground with its doors open
The freak incident happened at 2.30pm yesterday when the flat's residents were returning from Friday prayers, according to a report in NST Online.
The lift crashed from the fifth floor after its braking system had malfunctioned.
"Many screamed in fear. I only managed to grab hold of the elevator's button panel and could not think as everything happened so fast," 24-year-old Ahmad Shahid Imran, who was in the lift with others, was quoted as saying.
According to Imran, there were nine people in the lift, including a woman, a child and a disabled man. Some of them sprained and broke their legs in the incident.
It is a horrifying experience I will not be able to forget.
There were nine people in the lift and eight of them sustained multiple injuries, including broken legs and sprained wrists
"All injured victims were taken to the Universiti Malaya Medical Centre for treatment," Kuala Lumpur Fire and Rescue Department senior operations chief Muhammad Ridwan Kamarulzaman was quoted as saying by FMT.
According to him, the operation to rescue the injured, which included six men, a woman and a 10-year-old boy, took about 15 minutes.
A father and son were believed to have suffered broken legs
The man's wife, Haliza Hassan, said that her husband and 10-year-old son are now at the Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC) for treatment.
"I urge the local authorities to take stern action in this matter, do not wait for there to be a death before taking action," NST Online quoted her as saying.
According to one of the residents at the Kerinchi PPR flat, there was a similar incident last year that happened at the same block
"The same incident last year, but no one died, just minor injuries.
"Usually, local authorities maintain the elevators in this PPR area but after a few days, the elevators will break down again," 60-year-old resident Idris Abd Samad said.
Following the incident, Kuala Lumpur mayor Nor Hisham Ahmad Dahlan said that he would meet with 11 elevator maintenance contractors involved in 45 public housing projects (PPR) in the nation's capital to check on the condition of its elevators
"I was shocked by what happened, as a result of that, I have directed for an immediate meeting with 11 PPR elevator maintenance contractors to go over the current procedures," NST Online quoted him as saying at the Kerinchi PPR flats.
"We will not compromise on things like these and we will conduct an investigation immediately," he said, adding that the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) would bear the cost of treatment for the victims who were injured in yesterday's incident.
