Teen Girl Dies After Elevator Shoots 30 Floors Up

A teen girl in China was killed in an elevator accident after the car malfunctioned and shot up 30 floors with her trapped inside.

The incident took place Sunday, May 23, at an apartment building in Jinhai Bay residential neighborhood in the coastal city of Zhanjiang.

The victim, who has not been publicly identified, was trapped inside the elevator that stopped between the basement level and the first floor. She called a family member, and a maintenance worker was dispatched for help.

As a maintenance worker made attempts to open the elevator doors, the car suddenly shot up and traveled 30 floors until it hit the top of the elevator shaft, Shanghai news portal, The Paper reported.

She was freed after an hour-long rescue operation. Emergency services rushed her to a local hospital where she was later pronounced dead. The exact cause of death is unclear at this time.

A task force has been formed to investigate the deadly incident. A preliminary investigation revealed the accident occurred due to a malfunction in the elevator's braking mechanism, causing the counterbalance to drop and the car to shoot upwards.

A government statement named Shenyang Brilliant Elevator Co. Ltd. (BLT) as the supplier that provided the lift equipment to the apartment developers.

Around 24 BLT lifts were reportedly installed throughout the residential area. The equipment in question was installed in 2014 and is considered new, the statement said.

Local residents, however, claim to have experienced repeated malfunctions with the lifts, including unexplained stalling.

The maintenance worker was employed by a third party, and the statement said his attempts to open the elevator doors are not believed to have caused the deadly accident.

"Incidents, where elevators shoot to the top floor, are quite common, but it is not often that they result in injury or death," Wang Libin, an engineer with the Hangzhou Special Equipment Inspection and Research Institute, told The Paper.

The victim’s exact age is unknown but she was reported to be a high school student who was just a week away from taking her national college exams.