Elevator-Related Deaths |
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| Authors: | Joseph A Prahlow MD Zuhha Ashraf MD Natalie Plaza MD Christopher Rogers MD Pamela Ferreira MD David R Fowler MD Melissa M Blessing DO Dwayne A Wolf MD PhD Michael A Graham MD Kelly Sandberg MS Theodore T Brown MD Patrick E Lantz MD |
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| Institution: | 1. Western Michigan University Homer Stryker MD School of Medicine, 300 Portage St., Kalamazoo, MI, 49007;2. Los Angeles County Department of the Medical Examiner-Coroner, 1104 N. Mission Rd., Los Angeles, CA, 90033;3. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, State of Maryland, 900 West Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD, 21223;4. Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences, 1861 Old Spanish Trail, Houston, TX, 77025;5. Division of Forensic Pathology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 1402 South Grand Ave., St. Louis, MO, 63104;6. Franklin County Coroner’s Office, 520 King Avel, Columbus, OH, 43201;7. Department of Pathology, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Medical Center Blvd., Winston-Salem, NC, 27157 |
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| Abstract: | Elevators are mechanical transportation devices used to move vertically between different levels of a building. When first developed, elevators lacked the safety features. When safety mechanisms were developed, elevators became a common feature of multistory buildings. Despite their well-regarded safety record, elevators are not without the potential for danger of injury or death. Persons at-risk for elevator-related death include maintenance and construction workers, other employees, and those who are prone to risky behavior. Deaths may be related to asphyxia, blunt force, avulsion injuries, and various forms of environmental trauma. In this review, we report on 48 elevator-related deaths that occurred in nine different medicolegal death investigation jurisdictions within the United States over an approximately 30-year period. The data represents a cross-section of the different types of elevator-related deaths that may be encountered. The review also presents an overview of preventive strategies for the purpose of avoiding future elevator-related fatalities. |
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| Keywords: | forensic science forensic pathology death death investigation elevator injury prevention |
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