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Woman's Leg Caught In Elevator For Harrowing 8 Floor Ride


By

Ben Yakas

Published Dec 26, 2010

Modified Dec 26, 2010


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By

Ben Yakas

Published Dec 26, 2010

Modified Dec 26, 2010


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While most of us were knocking back egg nog and threatening our parents with Christmas Trees, one woman endured a horrible accident on Christmas day when her leg got trapped between an elevator car and the shaft wall. The 47-year-old woman was dragged up eight floors with her leg stuck in that position at the Downstate SUNY Medical Center in Prospect-Lefferts Gardens. "There was a lot of blood...A big chunk of her leg was missing. It looked like someone ripped it open with a knife," sources told the News.

Firefighters struggled for more than an hour to free the woman, and had to use two jaws of life to push the car back enough to release the leg, which remarkably stayed attached during the ordeal. The woman, who was said to have been drifting in and out of consciousness and bleeding profusely during the process of freeing her, was taken next door to Kings County Hospital. Sources say she is expected to survive, but they aren't sure if the leg can be saved: "It may have to be amputated...Her leg was mangled from about midthigh to her foot."

Tagged

elevator

accident

prospect lefferts gardens

brooklyn

Downstate SUNY Medical Center

leg


Ben Yakas

Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.

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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations


Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations


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