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[Update] Woman Trapped In Upper East Side Townhouse Elevator All Weekend
By
Ben Yakas
Published Jan 28, 2019
Modified Jan 29, 2019
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Jan 28, 2019
Modified Jan 29, 2019
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[Update Below] An unidentified woman was rescued Monday morning after being trapped in the elevator at an Upper East Side townhouse since Friday, according to the FDNY and multiple reports.
An FDNY spokesperson confirmed that they received a call around 10:10 a.m. Monday about a person who had been trapped inside an elevator in a private one-family townhouse on East 65th Street between Madison Avenue and Park Avenue.
ABC is reporting that the woman was a cleaning employee. They add: "Authorities say no one else was home while she was working in the private townhouse."
The FDNY spokesperson said the elevator was trapped between the second and third floors, and firefighters were able to force the door open and get the person, whose name and age have not been released, out.
The woman reportedly told the FDNY that they had been stuck there since Friday. Officials added that the person was in "good condition," and was transported to a local hospital.
We'll update as we learn more information.
Back in 2008, the New Yorker published an unforgettable story about a man who was stuck in an elevator for 41 hours. They also posted a timelapse video of him inside of it:
Update: The woman has now been identified by the NY Post as 53-year-old Marites Fortaliza. The townhouse belongs to billionaire conservative political donor Warren Stephens, who bought the residence in 1999. Stephens and his family were away all weekend, and got back home around 10 a.m. this morning, when they realized the elevator was stuck.
The townhouse has previously been hit with two violations from the city for failing to maintain the elevator, in 2008 and in 1996. A city buildings inspector who was on the scene today to inspect the elevator added that, "most likely, it will be [another] violation."
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Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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