"Just when Marco entered lift ... he was stuck and it collapsed"

"Just when Marco entered lift ... he was stuck and it collapsed"


"Just when Marco entered lift ... he was stuck and it collapsed"

More information has been revealed by now about the accident where poplar ruggerite Kokila Samandaperuma alias Marco embraced death in a elevator of a night club down Navam Mawatha. According to a person who underwent this experience says that at the moment of the accident, the elevator has not travelled upwards.

Marco and a few others had pressed the button to get into the lift and at that time there were about 15 persons ready to get into the lift concerned. No alarm has gone off to indicate that the load was too
much. Just  as Marco has set foot by getting into the lift as the last person who was to enter, the lift which was on the ground floor has collapsed right down to the basement. Though it did not travel that much of a distance as such, when trying to enter through the door which was ajar at that moment had got stuck and collapsed, thus ending with Marco sustaining severe injuries.

It was reported that Marco had got stuck on the side of the wall of the building and the lift when the lift was coming down and his chest was pressed with Marco bleeding in the process. It was at that moment that Marco has breathed his last. This incident was described by a person travelling that moment in the elevator in the following manner: "There were about 10 of us who went inside. After that we pressed the button and awaited the lift and when the lift arrived, the whole lot of us who were there and 4 or 5 persons came inside at that point. Then when it was to move upward, in a flash the lift abruptly came down at once. What I then saw was only one hand, left foot and an arm of Marco. There was another person on the other side and there was only one part of his body to be seen. Everyone inside began yelling. There actually was nothing to do at that time.

I removed the shirt and after wrapping it round the hand ... broke the glass. There was a glass on the other side too. Those from outside then broke that glass. It is by breaking that glass that all of them were taken out. The last ones were taken out by putting a ladder there ... those who were stuck inside the lift.

There is no evidence to say that the lift was overloaded. Not even one second passed ... the lift totally collapsed and at that time I was inside and it is by breaking the glass at the rear I was able to come out and at the time of the accident those inside called a phone number tere and asked for help. Then a team of technicians of the company belonging to the lift was sent and steps were taken to rescue those who were stuck. In the process the fire brigade and police arrived at the scene and made inquiries. It is reported that it was a difficult task to take deceased Marco from there and it is only with the support of the fire brigade his body was removed.

The post mortem was conducted at the National Hospital and it was revealed that the cause of death was asphyxia and that Kokila's rib cage was subjected to damage. What police said was that relevant matters were forwarded to Fort Magistrate Court regarding the incident concerned. Police have also said that future procedures will be carried out after engineers of State Engineering Corporation were engaged to inquire into reasons for this collapse of the elevator in that manner and a technical report was called for by court and it was said that the lift was an old one. In the meantime, the said night club is out of bounds till 3rd next month, it is reported.

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