Paramus, NJ – 8 year-old girl suffers severe injuries after leg entrapped in Garden State Plaza escalator

An 8-year-old girl was severely injured after her leg became entrapped by an escalator at the Westfield Garden State Plaza, located in Paramus, New Jersey, around 11:45 a.m. on the morning of Friday, August 16, 2013. The girl and her mother boarded the escalator on the lower level, headed towards the first floor. As they reached the top landing, the girl’s right foot apparently became entrapped between two steps, subsequently causing her leg to become entrapped as well. A nearby bystander reacted quickly and activated the emergency stop switch, which stopped the escalator, but the girl remained entrapped for some time until fire, police, and nearby bystanders were able to disassemble the landing to free the girl. Continue reading

Mount Vernon, NY – 11 year-old boy falls down elevator shaft

According to NBC New York, an 11-year old boy fell three floors down an elevator shaft around 12:30pm on Sunday, December 9, 2012. According to police, the victim and other young boys were playing in the building hallway when “the elevator doors unexpectedly opened and one of the boys fell in”. The condition of the boy was not immediately clear, but presumably the boy was hospitalized and sustained serious injury. Continue reading