Elevator death: Probe reveals RG Kar lift operators got no training on handling emergency situations

Kolkata: Investigations into the RG Kar elevator death revealed that the lift operators at the hospital had received no training on how to handle emergency situations and they had been appointed just one month prior to the tragic incident on March 20.

Detectives from Kolkata Police uncovered this crucial information while interrogating the three lift operators arrested in connection with the fatal incident at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in which Arup Banerjee of Nager Bazar was crushed between a lift and a wall.

A senior police officer said on Thursday that the Public Works Department (PWD) had outsourced the maintenance of the lifts at RG Kar Hospital to one agency, while the responsibility for providing lift operators was contracted to a different agency.

The contract with the previous agency responsible for supplying lift operators expired last February. From mid-February onwards, the PWD awarded the contract to a new agency. Consequently, a new team of lift operators was recruited by this new agency.

These new operators were assigned a supervisor; however, the supervisor would leave for home at night. During interrogation, the arrested lift operators admitted to the police that, since the supervisor was not present at night, hardly any of them would actually remain inside the lifts during their night shifts. Instead, some would sleep, others would listen to music and some would simply pass the time chatting. For this very reason, on the day of the incident, there was not a single lift operator anywhere near the lift.

During interrogation, the three arrested lift operators informed the detectives that, prior to commencing their duties, they were taught only how to operate the lift. They were instructed that if the lift were to stall midway, they should proceed to the floor above and pull a lever to manually hoist the lift upwards. However, they were not taught what specific measures to take in the event of an emergency or disaster. Detectives are now preparing to interrogate the authorities of their employing agency regarding this matter.

The arrested lift operators further disclosed to the detectives that while the commotion and shouting were ongoing, all three of them took a different lift down to the basement. The grille gate in front of that lift, too, was found to be locked. Upon descending into the basement, the lift operators heard the screams of Arup and his wife, Sonali.

The accused lift operators claimed that they believed Arup’s family was trapped inside the elevator car. They failed to realise that Arup and his companions were actually stuck between the elevator car and the outer grille, desperately trying to survive while standing in the elevator shaft pit.

They took that very elevator back up to the top floor. Upon reaching the uppermost level, they cut off the power supply to Elevator No. 2 of the Trauma Care unit. Subsequently, by pulling a lever, they began hoisting the elevator car upward using a pulley system. As a result, the elevator door momentarily sprang open before slamming shut with tremendous force. At that precise moment, Arup’s leg was caught in the door. With Arup still trapped in the doorway, the elevator car began to ascend slowly. The accused continued to manually haul the elevator upward; as a result, Arup was dragged upward in that precarious position and was crushed between the elevator car and the shaft wall.

IANS